The Scent of Awakening
by Final Frontier Voyager
Summary: There's a new killer on the loose, and Hotch sends two of his agents on an investigating mission that turns into a nightmare for them. Partly casefic, Reid-centric /whump!/ in later chapters. No pairings. My first story ever! NOW COMPLETE
1. Prologue

**A.N.: Hi everyone! Here's my first story written for FanFiction. Well, it's partly finished, and because I was afraid that in the beginning it seems a bit slow, I decided to take out a part from one of the later chapters and post it as a prologue to gather some interest:D Hope you enjoy it!**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Criminal Minds... of course.**

**P.S.: Since I'm not a native English-speaker, I'm currently looking for anyone who has time and enthusiasm to beta-read for me... I'd be grateful for that:) I apologize for the possible (and probable) mistakes in this part.**

**The Scent of Awakening**

Prologue

_Awakening..._

Suddenly he found himself roughly shaken awake. It was like crashing into ice cold water after long minutes of blissful floating. It all came back instantly: the cold, the wind, the pain.

Prentiss was shaking his shoulder, and kept calling his name.

"What?" he mumbled in a raspy voice.

"Try not to fall asleep" she told him and ceased the shaking as she saw that he was finally awake.

"And why not?" Reid demanded almost angrily. He found it very cruel of her not letting him slip into that blissful state where he can ignore the pain and the cold.

"Because" she replied and lifted Reid's chin with her hand as his head fell down sleepily to his chest "you probably have a concussion judging by that nasty head gash of yours, and..."

"My head feels fine" Reid lied.

"...and if you're asleep, your body can fight less effectively against the cold" she finished the sentence, ignoring the interruption.

Reid silently admitted that she was right. He was still violently shaking from the icy weather that kept on assaulting them, and the fact that they were sitting between the roots of a giant tree, huddled up against each other to keep themselves as much warm as possible, barely helped him.

"Only three hours until dawn" Prentiss announced "if I am not mistaken"

Reid merely nodded and blinked heavily. He wanted to sleep and it was hard to fight against it. He had to tear himself apart from returning to that comfortable, warm place, back here, in the freezing hell.

He knew he had a fever...

**That's it! Well sorry if it's too short, it seemed a lot longer to me when I edited it in Word:) Please review and tell me if I should post the rest of the story! Thanks,**

**FFV  
**


	2. Chapter 1: A New Case

**A.N.: Sorry I kept you waiting for so long, I didn't dare to start posting the story without a beta reader! I have one now, so here it comes! Big thanks to REIDFANATIC for beta-reading, and also thanks to my first reviewers: tearbos, tfm, KASEY64, SpecialParanoia, cause., SeeMeInTheShadows and the-vampire-act.**

**Disclaimer: I don't own CM  
**

Chapter 1: A new case

A girl was walking down the empty, dark street. It was quite late, almost midnight; she was coming home from a friend's party where she'd stayed a little too long; in fact she'd promised her mom the day before that she'd be home at eleven, and now she was almost an hour late.

Icy winter wind blew in her face; she was shivering from the cold and nervousness. One of the street lamps was not working; she swallowed her fear of the dark and sped up her pace a bit, wishing nothing more than to arrive home soon and be done with her mom's preaching.

Suddenly, something made her stop; her heart jumped to her throat as she heard moaning. Quickly glancing around, she discovered the source of it, a man was lying at the wall in a nearby alley, squirming and whimpering.

She stood there, frozen to the spot, heart still racing, and had absolutely no idea what to do. Her instincts were telling her to run and get as far away from here as possible, but something held her feet back; maybe the fact that she could finally make out the man's words – and they were crying for help.

She slowly approached the lying figure, and after a few seconds she gathered her courage.

"E... excuse me... are you okay? Can I help you?"

The man turned his head as if trying to find the speaker. "Help... please... I fell... hit my head... Help me please, I can't stand up..."

"Okay, don't worry, I'll call the ambulance" she told him, still scared a bit, but not as much. It was obvious now that this probably drunken man just fell and needed help. She took out her cell phone and dialed 911, slightly turning away, and was just about to push the call button when she felt a hand cover her mouth and another pulling her into a tight squeeze.

Her screams of horror were muffled and her attempts to break free failed miserably. How could that fallen, drunken man get up so rapidly? God, please help me, protect me, I never hurt anyone…

She had no time for further thoughts as the man's hand brought a cloth with a stinging smell to her nose and mouth, and held it there firmly. After a couple seconds she was lying motionless in his arms.

* * *

"Hey, I saw you, I saw you, and I'm about to catch...Shit!"

"What did you just say? Can't believe it... such a beautiful lady and such a hideous word!" Morgan joked at his colleague in front of the laptop. "Well, I gotta tell ya, you really do play like a girl"

"What a surprise" Prentiss sighed and shook her head in disappointment. "I'm sure though that you've already cheated at least twice..."

"Me? I don't even need to cheat; I'm so good at this game..."

"Actually if I were you, I wouldn't be so proud of that" Reid's voice came from behind. He was standing behind them, hands in his pockets, and watching the game closely. "This game is nearly as old as I am and it's fairly primitive. As I noticed, you were only pressing two buttons one after the other"

"Yeah, shut up, genius" Morgan murmured under his breath, and a moment later his fist swung into the air "I won! Told you I'm unbeatable!"

His joy of victory was cut short by JJ, who peeked into the room and nodded to them. "Guys, Hotch wants everyone in conference room right away, he's just dug up some new case I guess"

Grinning, Morgan shut down his laptop and followed the other two up the stairs.

"What's the buzz, tell us what's happening" he asked as he sat down on a chair by the table. His cheerful mood, however, disappeared as he looked at the photos JJ was showing them on the projector. Photos of violently killed women. Of course that wasn't a happy thing, even with so many years of work with serial killers.

"Five victims were found in or near the town of Riverwood, Montana. The local police weren't sure if they were dealing with a serial killer because the victims have nothing in common, except that they are all women"

"So there's probably a sexual component again" Prentiss interrupted in an official tone, but they all could feel the indignation in her voice. She obviously hated men who abused women just because they were weaker.

"Not sure" JJ answered. "There wasn't any sign of sexual assault on their bodies. They were even killed in different ways, found in different places, an alley, river, forest - that's why the local police thought it wasn't the same killer. But five murders in less than four months- that became suspicious eventually."

Everyone fell silent for a couple of seconds, then Hotch, who was submerged in a conversation with Rossi in the corner, spoke up. "Alright, if no one has a question, go and get ready; wheels up in an hour."

**Following chapters will be even longer, promise:)**

**Riverwood, by the way, is in Tennessee. I just made up the name and had no idea that it actually exists; but I needed a colder place for my story, so I put it in a northern state. sorry about that:D**

**What's te buzz, tell me what's happening - it's from Jesus Christ Superstar. Just in case it sounds odd:)**

**FFV  
**


	3. Chapter 2: Victims & Questions

**A.N.: Second chapter comes here... Told you it begins a bit slow, it will speed up in the future. However, thanks to REIDFANATIC for beta-reading and the-vampire-act for reviewing:)**

Chapter 2: Victims & Questions

"Okay now, let's go through the victims again" Reid said, sleepily rubbing his eyes. He'd awoken a couple of minutes ago from the regular sleep on the jet, but there was still about fifty minutes until arrival. Hotch and JJ were still sleeping, but Rossi, Morgan and Prentiss were awake; they decided to start studying the case.

"First one, Hannah Miller" Rossi read out from the file "36-years old, white, found on the 16th of October, on a riverbank. She was drowned; her wrists and ankles tied together with a string."

"How long has she been living in Riverwood?" Reid asked.

"Five years."

"So she wasn't a newcomer... though it wouldn't be the first case, murdering newcomers, would it?"

"Who's the second?" Prentiss asked.

"Alicia Donovan, 28, black, found on the 20th of November, her throat was cut with a knife. She was born here, went to high school here, and after college she came back here and worked as a nurse in the local hospital."

"Not a very interesting life, huh?" Morgan concluded.

"Next one, Mary-Ellen Brooks, 51, white, found on the 9th of December, in an alley in Riverwood. Doctors found she had been injected with a massive amount of strychnine."

"Different methods of killing, different places, it seems our unsub doesn't like to repeat himself" Prentiss added. "It's either that or he's smart enough not to help us tracking him..."

"Or he doesn't like reminding himself of his former actions" Reid finished. "That means he's not proud of them, maybe even disgusted, but something makes him kill again and again."

"I don't see any other connection between them" Rossi shook his head. "Next victim, Naomi Jorgensen, 24, found on the 12th of January in a nearby forest, with a single gunshot wound to the forehead. She was Swedish, by the way, her family moved to the States thirteen years ago. And the last one, 15-year-old little Shannon Wanders, found strangled behind a container yesterday, only a hundred meters away from her home."

"Well, no obvious connections" admitted Reid "Apart from that they're all women and they all live in the same town. But there still can be minor similarities... Let me look into it"

He reached for the file, opened it and started to read again.

"It seems that the murders aren't personal" Prentiss stated. "These five women didn't know each other, they had different lives. There was no sexual assault. The unsub has another intention... or hasn't any intention at all"

"You think that we're dealing with a random killer?" Morgan asked.

"Maybe, I'm just guessing"

"A random killer that is too lazy to move out of town and that is only targeting women?"

"Not impossible"

"Then we'll either find him quite easily or won't find him at all"

"Did you get anywhere?" Hotch came to them and sat down beside Prentiss. Behind his back JJ started to stretch too.

"Not so far" Morgan answered tiredly. "He could even be a random killer"

"Absolutely no connections" Reid looked up from the file to his boss. "No common schools, professions, relatives, hobbies, anything. I only found random connections: Mary-Ellen Brooks was a teacher at the same school Shannon was going to. Mary-Ellen and Hannah Miller both have two children. Naomi Jorgensen and Alicia Donovan used to go swimming to the same sports center. But the other victims have nothing to do with these"

"We presume that he didn't know his victims" Rossi added "He didn't abuse them, didn't even take off their clothes. His intention is not some kind of personal revenge, or he simply wants to take revenge on women in general"

"Then there must have been something in his life that started this," Prentiss continued "Abusive mother, unfaithful girlfriend, a teacher at school that treated him unfairly..."

"And what if it's a woman?" the question, to everyone's surprise, was Morgan's.

"A woman?"

"Yeah, I mean, there's no sexual assault, nor any sign of torture on the bodies… It's pretty unusual for a male criminal not touching his female victims' bodies at all…"

Prentiss pulled together her brows. "That's right, but what would make a woman kill other women she doesn't even know, from the age of fifteen to fifty-one?

"Insanity, maybe?" Morgan spread his arms half-ironically.

"In cases of female murderers, it's usually more about some kind of personal revenge." Reid joined in too.

"Morgan definitely has a point, but I agree with the two of you" Rossi said, and being the oldest member, the final word was usually his. "He's a male."

"Guys, rest your brain a bit" JJ interrupted "We're landing in a few minutes. You can discuss everything in the hotel"

"Okay" Morgan yawned and stretched his arms, as the others started to secure their seatbelts.

* * *

Knock, knock.

Reid smiled at the curly-haired, elderly woman that opened the door. She was wearing glasses, and looked suspiciously at the two agents standing on her doorstep.

"Michaela Jorgensen?" Morgan asked her, showing his ID. After her small nod he continued: "Sorry for the disturbance. I'm Derek Morgan and this is Dr. Spencer Reid, we're from the FBI. Can we ask some questions about your daughter?"

She silently nodded again, opened the door more widely, and let the agents inside.

The Jorgensens had a relatively big house in the suburbs, with a neat, beautiful garden; well, it looked neat and beautiful even now, in February. And inside the house too, everything was clean and tidy. Morgan looked around in the large living room before sitting down on the couch. It just looked like a normal American home of wealthy people. There were photographs above the fireplace; most of them were of Naomi. Mrs. Jorgensen didn't say a word, just went into the kitchen to make some tea.

"God, she looks depressed" Morgan whispered to Reid.

"Are you surprised?" he hissed back "You wouldn't be happy in her place, even after a month or so"

"It's okay, man, I know, and I feel really sorry for her"

Mrs. Jorgensen returned, handed them both a cup of tea, then sat down in front of them and asked quietly:

"What can I do to help you?"

"Ma'am, first we'd like to express the deepest condolences for the loss of your daughter" Morgan started after taking a sip of his tea. Mrs. Jorgensen merely nodded. "We'd like to ask a few questions, if you don't mind"

"Go on" she answered. "I'm willing to tell anything that helps you catch that..."

She didn't finish the sentence. Reid hurried to her help.

"Can you recall where Naomi was going on the day she disappeared?"

Mrs. Jorgensen swallowed hard but didn't hesitate. "She was going to the sports center. She used to swim a lot in her free time. She insisted that sport is very important if you want to live a healthy life. I used to accompany her but now, you see, I'm old and tired"

"Where exactly is the sports center?"

"It's on the edge of the town. Well exactly, it's rather out of town, about half a mile to the west, in the middle of a nice grove"

"How often did she go swimming?"

"Three times a week"

"Did she go there alone?"

"I don't really know," Mrs. Jorgensen thought about it for a second "Sometimes she went with a friend from college, but I don't think it was regular"

Morgan and Reid exchanged a look.

"Ma'am," Morgan asked, "Do you know somebody who... behaved suspiciously for a while? Some guy who appeared around Naomi... and you didn't know who he was?"

Mrs. Jorgensen shook her head. "No. I know all the boys Naomi was hanging around with. Some from college, some from the neighborhood. They weren't suspicious to me at all. However..."

"...What?" Reid asked, looking at the woman, his eyes narrowing in concentration.

"...have you investigated those people in the woods?"

"People in the woods?" The agents exchanged a look again.

"Yeah, some kind of crazy cult. I don't know much about them. They live separate from the townspeople, in the forest not far from here, but they don't cause much trouble. You know, I was just thinking..."

"Had Naomi ever gotten in touch with them?" Reid could hardly hide the sudden excitement in his voice.

Mrs. Jorgensen hesitated a bit, then answered. "Not really. When she was about fourteen, she had this... time. She started listening to hard rock; wearing black and so on... you know a lot of teenagers like that style. I think she might have had some strange friends during that time... but just like the others, she soon grew out of it"

Tears filled her eyes as she recalled that time of her daughter's youth. Reid involuntarily lifted his hand and grabbed hers to soothe her. "It's okay"

"Thank you for your help and the tea" Morgan said as he stood up. "We'll not disturb you any more. Call us if you want to share anything else"

Mrs. Jorgensen nodded, and escorted them to the door, sniffling slightly. Once outside the house, Morgan turned to his colleague.

"A crazy cult in the woods? I bet Hotch will be interested in this"


	4. Chapter 3: The People in the Woods

**A.N.: Third chapter, guys. I have some pretty rough exams in the next week so I don't know when I'll be able to post more, but I'll work on it. Thanks to REIDFANATIC for beta-reading, and also thanks to Foxgurl0000, the-vampire-act, and Hearty1 for reviewing:)**

Chapter 3: The people in the woods

"How do you even know it's the same killer in all cases?" Chief Trevors, the head of the local police demanded of a tired and pretty bored Hotchner.

"As I've explained, sir" he answered patiently "There are signs that tell us many things about this man. Even if the victims were murdered in different ways, the timeline between the attacks seems to have something of a pattern, so far one per month. And he finishes them off quickly; the victims' disappearances weren't even reported before the bodies were found. If he kidnapped the women, he only did that to take them to a place where no one could see or hear so he could kill them without being caught. He didn't torture them; there are no wounds on the bodies except the ones that caused the death. He wants them to die fast."

"Of course it is possible that there is more than one man involved. We don't have the whole profile yet, but these murders are 100 percent connected to each other," Prentiss added, a bit irritated over the policeman's stubbornness.

Chief Trevors reluctantly nodded. "Okay, I'm sorry, of course I don't doubt your knowledge and experience, and I wouldn't have called you if I didn't need help. God, someone's out there killing women in our town and we're unable to stop him, it's like my worst nightmares are coming true."

"We understand, sir," Prentiss hurried to reassure him. "Just let us do our job"

"We need to inform people," Rossi stated. "They'll have to be more careful, not walking alone at night, that sort of thing. And now, could we please see the latest victim?"

"Of course," Trevors motioned them to follow him. At just that moment Morgan and Reid arrived in the office.

"Sir, wait a moment," Morgan called after Trevors, who turned and looked at him, his expression conveying his curiosity.

"Sir, could you tell us more about the people in the woods?"

"What?" Hotch looked surprised. "What people?"

Chief Trevors' voice sounded unpleasant as he answered. "There's a local cult that has its meeting place in the middle of the forest right outside the town. Some of the leaders live there but most of the members are honorable townspeople."

"Wait, wait, wait, you've got a sect on your hands and you forgot to tell me?" Hotch demanded.

"Are they some kind of Satanists?" Morgan asked impatiently.

Trevors looked at them with a fearful expression. "Hell, no, what do you think? They're not Satanist, well, I don't exactly know what they believe in, but I swear there's not the slightest problem with them! Never was. No violence, no other crimes, not even vandalism. And I already visited them, interrogated their leader, Riley Hanson, and found nothing. However, you're free to see them if you want of course."

"Of course we want to," Hotch replied dryly.

"Well, I have to tell you that it's not going to be as easy as it looks."

"What do you mean?"

Trevors scratched his head as he thought about the right phrasing. "Actually they don't simply allow guests in their sanctuary; you have to be a member to have the privilege of visiting the place."

"You can't be serious," Rossi said, shaking his head in disbelief.

"Well you can see we're not simply guests," Hotch argued. "We're federal agents investigating a case of multiple murders. That should mean something."

"Agent, I fully understand you," Trevors kept on scratching the top of his head in perplexity. "I'm doing my best to avoid any conflict with them. When they formed into a religious group and asked permission to live separated, in the woods, I gave it to them, agreeing that no one could approach them without their consent, if there would be no trouble. And there hasn't been any trouble, well, until now. But I think there's a way that you can go in there, without conflict."

"And what is that way?" Hotch asked.

"I heard that they usually give an opportunity for outsiders who possibly want to join, to come over, spend two or three days with them in the sanctuary, look around and learn about their religion, and after that they can decide whether they want to join or not."

"Sounds interesting" Prentiss teased "And you suggest that we should apply for this three-day-period demo version for only a couple of questions?"

"Maybe it's not only a couple of questions," Hotch interrupted "Maybe we can do a little investigation there as well. Followers of small-numbered cults like this are always suspicious on some level."

"Yeah, sure," Trevors hurried to agree. "However, I can take you to the deputy of the mayor, who is a member himself, and who can give you further information about this."

"We'd appreciate that," Hotchner nodded. "Prentiss, Rossi, please go with the officer to question the deputy mayor. Morgan, Reid, I want you to come with me to examine the victim."

"Right," Trevors said nervously, and then motioned to a younger officer to come over. "Tom, would you please escort the agents to the body of Miss Wanders."

The young officer nodded and without waiting for the agents, he started heading downstairs, while Chief Trevors, Rossi and Prentiss left through the front door to their cars.


	5. Chapter 4: Elegy of a Young Girl

**A. N.: I know it has been a while, but now I'm done with most of my exams. Fourth chapter here! Happy reading, please review:) Thanks to Foxgurl0000, the-vampire-act, and SeeMeInTheShadows for reviewing, and of course to REIDFANATIC for beta-reading!**

Chapter 4: Elegy of a young girl

"Behold," was Tom's short comment.

The three agents stared down in silence at the body of the young girl. Their faces were expressionless, though it had hit them hard to see such a young and beautiful girl lying there dead and motionless, torn apart from life so soon, but they had already seen so many horrible murders and so many innocent souls wasted, that they could easily swallow their emotions.

"So young," Morgan only sighed regretfully, shaking his head in grief. The girl really didn't look older than 15.

"Who found her?" Hotch's always stoic voice disturbed the mournful silence.

"An old lady, Mrs. Grunwald," Tom answered willingly, "The day before yesterday; when she went out shopping in the morning."

"She's been strangled," Reid established, looking closely at her neck; "Probably with a belt. I can't see any bruises, looks like she didn't try to fight back... wait, what's that smell?"

"Probably the preserving chemicals," Tom shrugged. "You know, it has a strange..."

"No, it's like a woman's perfume"

"Well, that's not impossible, considering that she was a female," Tom's insensitive tone was now slightly irritating. "But I think it's most likely that preserving stuff. After all, it has been two days... you know"

Hotch zipped open the body bag.

"Can you see any other injuries?"

Morgan shook his head. "Not a single scratch. Her whole body is untouched."

"Except for the strangle marks on her neck," Reid corrected.

"And she wasn't even raped," Tom stated, "As if it was a hitman's work. A clean and silent kill."

"Why would someone employ a hitman to hunt down and kill a 15-year-old girl? That's so pointless," Morgan debated.

"It_ is _pointless," Hotch confirmed. "I don't think there's such a thing as a hitman here," his words were addressed directly at Tom to knock him out of his oblivious and priggish mood. "Come on, we've seen cases like this. A male killing females with no sexual component…and we're out of ideas? What I think is that he simply wants them dead. No matter how, no matter where… and he doesn't even care about their looks, about their bodies… he wants them dead for something else, for some concrete reason."

They stood in silence for a while. Then Reid, who was still examining and sniffing the girl's neck, asked, "Why didn't she put up a fight?"

Tom shrugged again. "We think she was probably drugged. The tox screen didn't find anything in her system; maybe he made her inhale something."

"That's possible," Reid politely agreed. "Which leads us to the question, why did he stun her first, when he was bigger and stronger, and he could have easily strangled her the moment he caught her?"

"They said she was found in an alley," Morgan explained. "If he killed her on a residential street, he probably didn't want to wake the whole neighborhood with her screams."

"Or the place she was caught at and where she was found are not the same" Hotch continued thinking out loud. "He stunned her, took her to a place where he could finish her off cleanly and silently as the officer said," he gestured out to Tom, "where no one could disturb him, and then he took her body to a random place where it could easily be found"

"Actually it wasn't a random place," Tom interjected. "It was about three minutes from her home."

"What I think," Reid started, almost interrupting Tom, "is that it's more about a psychological reason. The unsub... his only intention is to have these women dead. He doesn't want to own their bodies, or even destroy them. This is why he kills them with the least damage to the bodies. Strangling, injecting poison... even the gunshot wounds! Naomi was found with a _single gunshot wound to the middle of the forehead._ He probably caught her in the grove, walking home from the sports center, he didn't have to worry about anyone hearing the shots, he could have simply emptied the magazine into her, but no, he probably stunned her too, so he could aim perfectly and kill instantly."

Reid licked his lips as they got dry during the long monologue. The others were silently looking at him, knowing that he hadn't finished yet. Reid looked at all of them in order. Hotch was staring at him with not the usual boredom, rather with something like pride in his eyes. Morgan's gaze appeared curious, and it was clear that he listened closely to his younger colleague. Tom, however, still looked inattentive and bored.

"He knows that it's a sin to kill, and it's even a bigger sin to kill women who are smaller and weaker." Reid went on. "He respects them…but something makes him commit the crimes anyway, again and again."

* * *

"Thank you for seeing us, Mr. Dawson," Chief Trevors' voice still sounded a bit nervous. "These are agents Prentiss and Rossi from the FBI."

"Welcome, and thank you for coming," Mr. Dawson said politely and stretched out his hand.

"They're members of the team that came to help us with the Ladybug case." Trevors continued the introductions.

"Ladybug?" Prentiss' eyebrows rose in surprise as she shook hands with the deputy. "You named him Ladybug?"

"I don't really know who invented it," Dawson hurried to explain. "It's word-play. He murders ladies, and well he bugs the police…I know it's lame, it has just stuck on him."

Rossi made a snuffling noise as if politely trying to laugh. Dawson gratefully nodded and invited them into his office.

"So…" Prentiss started as they took their places.

"I know you're here to question about our cult," Dawson said. "It's okay," he added as he saw that Rossi wanted to interrupt. "When such horrible crimes happen, a cult like that is always suspicious, I understand that."

"Thank you," Rossi nodded. "Exactly how many people live out there?"

"Not many. It's nothing like a 'secret society' or anything. In fact, as far as I know, only our spiritual leader, Riley Hanson and two or three of his closest followers live there in the sanctuary. The other members, like me, have an ordinary life here in the town, family, friends, and a job; we only go there for the meetings."

"How often do these meetings take place?" Prentiss asked.

"Twice a week."

"How many members usually attend the meetings?"

"About a hundred, maybe more. But not everyone comes to every occasion. Altogether there are about a hundred and fifty, maybe two hundred members. I don't know exactly."

"Mr. Dawson, did you know any of the victims?" Rossi asked.

"Personally, no," the deputy answered. "My son knew Shannon from the school, but they weren't close to each other. I saw Mrs. Brooks on some of the charity programs, but that's all."

Prentiss leaned forward. "So, none of the victims was a member of the cult?"

Dawson shook his head. "Not as far as I know."

"Sir, we'd like to speak with Mr. Hanson," she continued. "How is that possible?"

Dawson fell silent, and they all could see the unpleasant expression on his face. "I'm sorry, but since Mr. Hanson is our spiritual leader, I have no right to demand anything from him."

"For God's sake," Rossi burst out, "you're the deputy of the mayor! Can't you just arrange somehow that we could at least speak to him?"

"You have to understand, sir. He's the leader of a religious group, and he should be respected for that. In the cult, I'm practically Hanson's subordinate, so in this kind of situation, I can't do very much."

"We heard, that there is a way we can pay him a visit," Prentiss interrupted, changing her tone.

Dawson nodded. "Yes, I just wanted to tell you about that. You have the right to spend a couple of days in the sanctuary, if you're interested. I'm sure Mr. Hanson would be pleased to have you as guests, and he'll be ready to answer your questions."

"I still don't get why he isn't able to just simply come here and talk to us," Rossi shook his head.

"He doesn't come very often into town. About once in a month, to buy food and other things he needs. But he never communicates with anyone who's not in the group. When there are no meetings, he lives like a… kind of an hermit out there. He has built strict rules to himself."

"Okay, so how do we tell him we'd like to pay a visit?" Prentiss asked.

"I will talk to him," Dawson answered. He seemed a lot calmer, now that the agents proved to be cooperative. He definitely didn't want to get into any trouble, either with the Bureau or Hanson.

"He'll come into town next Monday. I'll meet him and then call you if everything's all right. Are you okay with that?"

"Absolutely, sir," Prentiss sighed tiredly.

There were five more days until Monday, but they had accomplished something, at least. She didn't know many people who were so complicated to talk to.


	6. Chapter 5: The Scent of Awakening

**A.N.: Fifth chapter at last, sorry it took me so long. The Scent of Awakening, by the way, comes from the Nightwish song Meadows of Heaven**. **It's a beautiful song, everyone who doesn't know it yet should listen to it:) I don't know why, I just got the idea from that. Hope you enjoy this chapter too! Thanks to the-vampire-act and Foxgurl0000 for reviewing, and to REIDFANATIC for beta-reading!**

Chapter 5: The Scent of Awakening

Something was ringing.

Reid slowly managed to cross the barrier between sleeping and wakefulness. Unconsciously he groped for the alarm clock on the bedside table to mute it; that was when he realized it wasn't the clock but his cell that had awoken him. It was still dark outside with no sign yet of the dawn. _For Heaven's sake, what moron is calling me at, what's it, three a.m.?_

The phone was still ringing angrily when he finally dug it out of his bag and looked at the display that read 'Morgan'.

"Yeah?" he rather growled as he picked it up, his voice low from sleepiness.

"Reid, it's me. Get up immediately and get yourself ready. We're meeting down in the hall in ten minutes."

"What's happened?" Reid asked, becoming more lucid from his colleague's nervous voice.

"They found another body. A new victim." Morgan answered darkly.

"What?" Reid couldn't believe what he'd just heard. "But… the last one died only three days ago! And so far he…"

"Later kid," Morgan interrupted. "You can complain when we've caught up with the others. You better hurry; you've got eight minutes left. Oh, and dress warm, it's about fifteen degrees outside."

With that Morgan hung up and Reid stared at the phone confused. _Always one per month, that was the unsub's pattern so far. But now it's the second victim in four days. Things didn't look very good._

He gathered himself, looking at his watch. It wasn't three in the morning as he previously thought; it was already ten past seven, but damn these winter mornings were just as dark as the night itself.

Quickly he grabbed his clothes from yesterday, along with an extra sweater, taking Morgan's advice, and got dressed. To chase sleepiness finally out of his head, he washed his face in the bathroom, then grabbed his bag and hurried to the hotel room door.

* * *

It wasn't a nice sight. Never was.

A 40-year-old, brown-haired, dark-skinned woman's body lay on the grass in the park. She looked peaceful, as if just sleeping; her eyes closed, her arms neatly at her sides. There were no wounds on her body.

"It's our man," Hotch explained to Chief Trevors, who looked more nervous and desperate than ever. "The killer is the same as in the previous cases."

The park was full of policemen. Some of them were busy putting the yellow 'crime scene' bands on nearby trees, others were searching the grass for other clues. Rossi, Reid and Prentiss were examining the body.

"Sir, we have to give out information to the media," Hotch argued. "We have to inform people that it's dangerous for women in this community to walk alone."

"I'm sorry agent, but I don't agree with you," Trevors insisted "If people learn about our inability to catch this criminal, it will lead to disastrous results. Look, it's a small town. Everyone's heard of the murders and I'm sure they avoid hanging around alone, as much as possible. There's no need to blow it up even more."

"You don't understand," Hotch raised his hand in frustration. "The dates of the murders tell us something important. So far there was one in October, one in November, one in December, one in January, but in February it's the second now. Two bodies in four days, it's not a coincidence. Something made our killer change his pace. We think it's because he's become aware of the FBI's presence. This," he gestured towards the woman's body, "is meant for us. He wants to mock us, to send a message that he has the power to kill and not be caught. And he'll probably continue it, so this is why it's so important to warn people."

Just a few steps from them, Rossi was shaking his head. "Can you see any wounds?"

"Nope," Prentiss answered. "Apart from this," she pointed at the reddish marks on the woman's wrist. "Her hands were tied. She was smothered with a plastic bag. The police found that earlier."

"He probably incapacitated her too."

"Wait a minute," Reid said suddenly. "Can you smell that?"

"What?"

"Perfume," he answered and leaned closer to the victim's face.

"Perfume?"

"A familiar perfume," he corrected and continued sniffing.

Prentiss and Rossi exchanged a confused look.

Reid stood up and looked at them. "I've already smelled this scent on a victim before" he said, sounding confident, then strode away towards Hotch. Prentiss and Rossi exchanged a look again.

"A scent?" Hotch echoed skeptically. He didn't appear to be in a good mood even after he managed to get rid of the fussing Trevors.

"Yeah," Reid explained, "I've noticed it on Shannon yesterday and now here on Miss Drake. I don't know if it has any meaning. I just thought I'd mention it."

"I doubt that it would have any meaning," Hotch agreed "But you're free to check the other victims for that if you want."

"Thank you."

* * *

Reid visited Mrs. Jorgensen again, asking if he could take a look at the perfumes Naomi probably used. She was a bit nicer to him than she was the last time; perhaps hope had awakened in her that they'd soon catch the killer and her daughter's death would be avenged.

Reid found a dozen women's perfume bottles in the bathroom cupboard.

"Can you tell me which one of these she used most often?" he asked Mrs. Jorgensen.

"I don't really know," she answered. "I always smelled something on her; I think she used all of them in turns."

Reid puckered his brows. "Can I… can I smell them?" he then asked timidly.

"Of course, my dear, I don't mind."

Reid carefully opened the perfume bottles' caps and lifted each to his nose, sniffing them with great concentration. At a pink bottle, he suddenly stopped.

"That smells familiar…" he murmured, and looked at the name on the bottle. The Scent of Awakening. It was nice, though he couldn't really decide if it reminded him of the feeling of awakening.

"Thank you Mrs. Jorgensen," he said to the old lady as he stepped out of her door.

"Did you find something?" she asked hopefully. "Is it important?"

"Maybe it is," he nodded. "I don't know yet."

* * *

Reid hadn't been very successful with the other victims. He found a bottle of The Scent of Awakening in Shannon's room, and according to her sister, she used it a lot. Another bottle was found at the newest victim, Susanna Drake's, place, but that was all. Reid tried to speak to the other three victims' families but there was no trace of the perfume. Mrs. Brooks' belongings were either thrown away or given away to charity by her husband. A new occupant lived in Alicia Donovan's apartment now and he didn't know what had happened to the former tenant's belongings. And the Miller family didn't even live in Riverwood anymore, they moved a month or two after Hannah's death.

"So, three out of six?" Hotch raised a brow as Reid reported about his progress.

"So far. But even if I didn't find proof, they could have been using it" Reid nodded.

"Reid, it doesn't proving anything," Prentiss interrupted. "Three women out of six used a certain perfume. They probably wore similar clothes. They visited the same stores, and there're not too many stores in a small town like this."

"And I've never heard of anyone who would kill someone only for the perfume she uses," Morgan joined in too.

"It's not impossible," Reid argued. "That scent could mean something to him. Maybe he has some bad memories that are connected to this scent for some reason."

"Bad memories connected to a scent of a woman's perfume?"

"Yeah," Reid slightly blushed and let his gaze fall to the floor as he felt everyone's eyes on him, but continued, "You know, I still remember the perfume my mother used when I was little. The unsub can have plenty of reasons to hate a certain scent. Well not the scent, but the women in his life who used it, I don't know, abusive mother, aggressive sister, unfaithful girlfriend, maybe. If they had a big enough influence on his life, he could remember their perfume for his entire life."

"Madness," Morgan shook his head.

"You may be right, Reid," Hotch said his expression unreadable, "but as I said, there isn't enough proof to even start investigating."

Reid nodded and joined in as the team started discussing another question, but he made a mental note to ask Garcia later if the producer of The Scent of Awakening had any strange issues lately.

**So what do you think? Is the perfume linked to the killer or not? :D**


	7. Chapter 6: The Sanctuary

**A.N.: Sorry guys I kept you waiting again, I'll be posting more often from now on.**

**Thanks to SeeMeInTheShadows, cyn23, KASEY64, wolfeylady, the-vampire-act and tearbos for reviewing, and of course to REIDFANATIC for beta-reading!  
**

Chapter 6: The Sanctuary

Monday came at last. Around two in the afternoon, Hotch's cell phone rang.

"Hotchner."

"Sir, it's Alan Dawson. I spoke to Mr. Hanson."

"I'm listening."

"He agreed to talk to two of your agents, having them as visitors in the sanctuary. Normally, other visitors would stay there at least two or three days to fully get to know everything, but Mr. Hanson understands that you have no time to waste, so he offered that you could leave the next morning if you want to."

"We appreciate his kindness," Hotch said politely, feeling rather ridiculous that he, as a leader of a team of FBI agents, had to be grateful that a civilian was _willing _to see him.

"He's waiting for you at any time today, or any other day except Wednesday and Saturday when the meetings are taking place."

"We're very likely to visit him right away."

"All right sir, but he can't take you there because he's riding a bike. Head out of town to the west; in about five or six minutes there will be a dirt road to the left. It's too narrow for a car so the agents should walk about half a mile to the sanctuary. It's impossible to get lost; all you have to do is just follow the road."

"Thank you," Hotch said briefly and ended the call. Prentiss, JJ and Reid, who were sitting with him in the empty office Trevors had given them for work, were looking at him with questioning eyes. They were going through the victims for at least the hundredth time without any result, and they envied Morgan and Rossi who were hanging around in town and questioning people in places the victims probably often visited.

Hotch tiredly rubbed the skin between his eyes. "He's willing to see us, at last. I want to have him interrogated right away. You two," he pointed at Prentiss and Reid, "can go and visit him. Can I count on you?"

Two soft 'yeses' were heard. Hotch briefly told them what he had heard from Dawson.

* * *

"I'm feeling strange." Reid announced.

He and Prentiss were walking on the dirt road Dawson had spoken of. The forest was silent around them, the trees were bald, the sky grey and the ground brown with large spots of half-melted snow. The air was cold and they could see their own breaths coming out in white fumes in front of their faces.

"Why? Because we're about to spend the night in the meeting place of a suspicious cult?" Prentiss guessed teasingly.

"No… because I haven't had enough coffee this morning," he answered plainly, ignoring Prentiss' chuckling noise. "They make awful coffee here. I doubt it has ever seen caffeine."

"So, practically… you're not feeling strange, you're feeling sleepy."

"No, Prentiss, if I felt sleepy, I would have said that. But it's just… I don't know, a kind of uneasiness."

"You're an addict, admit it," Prentiss teased more, which made Reid fall silent.

"I'm sorry," she quickly apologized, becoming aware of her words. "I mean… for caffeine."

Reid smiled. "Well tell me something I don't know."

"That's not fair," she laughed. "You know I don't stand a chance!"

"I think we're here." Reid stopped and pointed forwards. A couple of houses appeared in front of them on the end of the road. They weren't protected by a fence, just stood there like a farm, strangely in the middle of the forest. They looked very old.

The two agents approached the 'sanctuary'.

"Hello?" Prentiss called out as they entered the biggest building through an open door. The house seemed unoccupied.

Reid looked around, the uneasiness still swirling in his stomach. _What if it's a trap? _a sudden thought sprang to his mind. _No, cool down, _he calmed himself. They weren't here to catch a suspect. They are here to ask a couple of questions.

The agents entered a big hall full of chairs. The walls were plain white, with brown and red carpets on the floor and a large, strange painting facing them at the far end of the hall. It showed a brown grain field with an unnaturally dark sky, and nothing else.

"Overwhelming, isn't it?" Prentiss stepped next to Reid who kept staring at the picture.

Suddenly a noise broke the silence and a door opened near the painting. A man hurried towards them; he was in his early thirties, tall, with brown hair and a friendly gaze.

"You must be the ones from the FBI," he said before he even reached the agents. "I'm Riley Hanson, and thanks for agreeing to pay us a visit. It's a pleasure to meet you."

They shook hands. Reid resisted the urge to ask him why he was so stubborn about having them spend a whole night here instead of just answering a couple of questions.

"So, first of all, I'm going to lead you around, show you where everything is. This room where we're standing right now is our meeting place…" He seemed pretty enthusiastic.

"I'm sorry to interrupt you but you are aware that we're only here because it's our job?" Prentiss asked, "you don't have to labor so much like with other visitors. We just have some questions."

"It's okay," Hanson nodded but he didn't seem resentful. "I just thought you might be interested a bit in our religion if you've come here…"

"We are," Reid hurried to reassure him. "Could you tell me something about that picture on the wall?"

"Sure. That's my work. It symbolizes the emptiness and meaninglessness of life, in a nutshell. We think that a man needs something spiritual to show him the way, to show him how to overcome life's monotony. Most people often feel that there's nothing interesting in their lives, nothing that leads you to the greater good, or however they put it. When we come together, they can find happiness in each other's company. It's all about happiness."

"So… isn't there something you actually believe in?" Reid asked.

Hanson smiled. "There is, of course. Basically, in my opinion, everyone believes in what he wants to believe in. That's very simple. We all believe that there exists some greater force that holds the world together. Some of us call it God. I call it Mother Spirit, but these are only different names to the same thing. Come, I'll show you where you'll sleep."

They followed him through the door he'd come in, out of the building. He headed for another house, a smaller and older looking one.

"This is the guest house," he explained. "Every time someone wants to join and comes to get to know things, or a member simply comes to find peace here, they can be alone and sleep here. My closest friends, Mark and Chris are usually staying here."

"How often?"

"About five days a week. They don't have a family so I am their family. I think they'll arrive later this evening."

Prentiss and Reid looked around in the small room. Two beds, another two in another room, and a bathroom. The furniture was very old too, but it seemed comfortable for someone who just wanted to be alone here.

"Now come to my house," Hanson called them, pointing towards the third house which was larger than the guest house but a lot smaller than the first one. "I'll make some tea then I'll be at your service."

**I know it's not too long but I promise next chapter will come tomorrow:)**


	8. Chapter 7: The Assault

**A.N.: I know I promised this to yesterday but I had some problems...**

**Thanks to the-vampire-act, cyn23 and KASEY64 for reviewing, and to REIDFANATIC for beta-reading.  
**

Chapter 7: The Assault

Hanson invited the agents into the house he said was his own and gestured towards a small table with three chairs in the kitchen. Prentiss and Reid sat down obediently. In a couple of minutes Hanson joined them with a teapot and a few cups. "So…" he started after he poured tea for everyone, "I'm willing to answer everything."

"Mr. Hanson, you've probably heard about the murders so you know why we're here," Prentiss said with an official tone.

The man nodded and took a sip of his tea. "I know you thought they could be some kind of ritual killings…"

"Well not this…" Reid tried to interrupt.

"…But I can assure you we're not that kind of a cult. I mean, we know and admit that 'Bad' exists, but we fully support peace and humanity. And most of all, we respect the law."

"We believe you," Reid said politely. "But please think about this. Isn't there anything, any rule or concept that someone might misunderstand?"

Hanson looked at him with surprised eyes. "I don't know any part of our religion that could ever be misunderstood like this… to go out and kill people. As I said, the most important things for us are peace and happiness."

"Mr. Hanson, did you know the victims?" Prentiss asked.

He shook his head, "No, not one of them."

"So none of them was a member here?"

"No."

"Do you know anyone in the cult who could have known them? Who could possibly be connected to their deaths?" Prentiss went on.

"I don't know who knows who in this town… I don't go in very often. I prefer to live here, on my own, as you've probably noticed. And I doubt that anyone here could have committed those crimes. We're peaceful people."

"Can I ask you what you were doing Wednesday evening?"

Hanson smiled. "I was here at the meeting. After that I was here alone. Wait… Chris was here with me too. You can ask him but he's not here at the moment. Now, if you'll please excuse me, I'll go and make dinner." He stood up. "Oh, and feel free to look around in the house. This is where I live, and through that door is my personal… well my spiritual room. I go there if I want to be really alone."

Reid and Prentiss looked at each other. Of course they wanted to look around.

Hanson's living room was rather puritan. A single sofa, some pillows and carpets on the floor; no television, no computer, not even a radio. There were paintings, however, two on the wall and some others next to an easel. It seemed that he spent much of his time painting, mostly landscapes.

There was no bedroom; Hanson apparently slept on his sofa. Two doors led out of the living room, one to the bathroom and the other to that spiritual room. Reid carefully entered the latter, closely followed by Prentiss.

The spiritual room looked like an ordinary bedroom, the only difference being that it had no bed. The walls were painted a warm orange color and adorned with paintings and tapestries; there was a large cupboard, a couple of chairs, and some plants too. It was much more comfortable than the previous rooms.

While Prentiss was lost in examining the paintings, Reid stepped to a small dresser in the corner. The photos on its top had attracted his interest: three pictures, each of a different woman with Hanson by their sides. They were about the same age as Hanson, so Reid suspected they were either girlfriends or sisters. Next to the photos there was also a small teddy bear, a flower in a pot and a perfume bottle.

Reid froze.

_A pink perfume bottle._

Could it be…?

Hesitating, Reid reached for the bottle, and turned it so he could read the brand.

It was as he thought, The Scent of Awakening. Reid closed his eyes, then opened them again to make sure he hadn't been dreaming. It was the same perfume he'd found at three of the victims' places. He slowly took off the cap and smelled it. He'd guessed right. The scent was the same one he had smelt on the bodies.

Could it be…?

It must be a coincidence. Probably every woman in this town used this perfume, Reid pondered. What was its secret? Garcia had found nothing while searching the producer of the brand.

If no woman lives here with Hanson… why does he have a woman's perfume? Maybe just to remind him of his girlfriends. Maybe…

He wanted to tell Prentiss what he had found, but at that moment Hanson appeared at the door. He was already opening his mouth to say something, probably to invite them for dinner, but he remained silent as his eyes met Reid's, who still held the pink bottle in his hand.

Their eyes locked on each other. Reid stared back at him, trying to read the man's gaze but it seemed impossible. Hanson's eyes didn't betray anything of their owner's thoughts.

"Dinner's ready," he finally spoke up, tearing his eyes from Reid's. Prentiss, who hadn't noticed a thing and was still looking at a painting, turned and smiled at Hanson.

"Thank you" she said and set off back to the kitchen.

Hanson returned the smile, then addressed Reid who still stood at the dresser. "I see you found my photo album. Those are the only things that remind me of my life before I moved here. The girls were my friends once, but that was long ago. Beautiful memories," he sighed and kept smiling, but his eyes were telling something else, something Reid couldn't quite define. He put the bottle back in its place and followed their host to the dinner table, pondering all the way whether he should ask him about the perfume or not. If he is linked to the murders, or, what's better, he _is_ the murderer, he would find out that they know about the perfume. Reid decided to talk to Prentiss about his dilemma once they were alone.

* * *

After dinner, the two agents returned to their house. Hanson told them they were welcome to turn in, because he would do the same after some meditation and reflection on the day.

Prentiss seemed tired. Reid wanted to tell her about the perfume as soon as he was sure they were alone, but she was already holding her cell phone and calling Hotch.

Reid looked around in the room while waiting for her to end the call, and this time something caught his attention. A rectangular door on the floor in a corner, or at least it looked like a door leading to a basement.

Prentiss only saw Reid's head disappear through the floor as the younger agent decided to venture down.

"Yeah, wait, Hotch, I think Reid has just found a basement or I don't know what. Wait a minute, I'll see if there are any bodies down there," she added jokingly, as she followed her colleague down the stairs.

She was right; it was a basement, a very empty basement, except for a couple of piles of some kind of construction debris. Reid looked around; there was a small round window on one of the walls near the ceiling. It looked like there was nothing they could place here, he thought. He heard Prentiss talk to Hotch on the phone, still smiling and somewhat disappointed.

"No, there's nothing here. No bodies, no proof. Yeah, it's a shame; I'd hoped we'd find some. Tomorrow? ...Yeah. That'll be okay. Thanks."

The moment she finished talking, a man suddenly entered the room. Prentiss and Reid stared at him in surprise. He was wearing a black mask, and carried a gun in his hand which he was pointing at Prentiss.

"That was enough," he announced in a cold voice. "And now give me that phone."

The two agents were still standing frozen to the spot. Reid's head was spinning in confusion. Who the hell was this man and why on earth was he wearing a mask? Was he Hanson himself? The voice resembled his. But he was a member of the cult, that was for sure, and he didn't want to be recognized, which meant he could be the unsub they were looking for! But before he could get a sign to Prentiss, the man repeated his demand.

"Are you deaf or what? I said give me the phone NOW!"

"Hey, cool down, sir," Prentiss, who found her voice at last, tried to calm him. "Put the gun down, there's no need for that, and tell us what's wrong."

"Shut up, bitch!" the man yelled and started to walk towards her.

Reid's eyes grew wide in panic. He had to act fast or this insane gunman would hurt Prentiss!

The masked man suddenly came to a halt as the skinny young man stepped in front of him.

"Get out of the way son," he barked at him.

But Reid didn't move. He had to gather all his courage to stand there, face-to-face with an angry guy with a gun, but the thought that his colleague could be hurt scared him more.

"Reid, it's okay" Prentiss tried to encroach.

"I said GET OUT OF THE WAY!" the man yelled into Reid's face but he still didn't answer, didn't even move, just stood between the gunman and Prentiss, his heart beating wildly in his chest.

The guy lifted his hand so swiftly that they had no time to react, and punched Reid heavily in the face. The young agent stumbled sideways and fell on the floor with a thud.

Prentiss automatically reached for her sidearm to protect her colleague, if necessary, but her hand brushed only the air next to her waist. She felt the blood freeze in her veins as she remembered that they had not brought their weapons due to Hanson's insistence on 'keeping this holy place free from violence'. Great! Of course, they'd come to chat about religion, not to take down an armed criminal. At least it made sense now why Reid had had that bad feeling.

"Well can't say I didn't warn you," the man spat out with a short laugh, then continued his way towards Prentiss. But before he could reach her, a sudden weight was thrown at him from the left, knocking him against the wall. It was Reid. Prentiss gasped in terror as the two men fell from the wall to the ground, fighting desperately. She had no idea how to stop them or how to help her teammate.

The next moment a gunshot rang out and echoed through the room.

* * *

**Uh oh...**


	9. Chapter 8: We'll Need a Plan

**A.N.: Haha, I know how much you've been waiting for this one:D but who didn't see it coming that they'll get in trouble sooner or later?:) enjoy.**

**Thanks to cyn23, SeeMeInTheShadows, JustThinkHappyThoughts, jessalynnGSR, KASEY64, the-vampire-act and Sue1313 for reviewing and to REIDFANATIC for beta-reading.  
**

Chapter 8: We'll Need a Plan

For a brief moment Emily Prentiss forgot to breathe. One horrible thought raced through her mind.

_Reid_!

But the sound of the gunshot wasn't followed by deadly silence. It was followed by a man's scream of pain and, after a couple of seconds, Prentiss realized it was Reid's. A wave of relief rushed through her, _at least he isn't dead if he can scream so loud._

The man slowly and disgustedly pushed himself away from Reid and stood up. The younger man stayed lying on the floor, giving out small cries of pain and clutching his left leg, under which a small pool of blood had already started forming.

"Oh my god!" Prentiss gasped and started to move towards her colleague, but the man's voice stopped her.

"Don't move!"

With a lazy swing of his leg he kicked Reid in the head then in the side. Reid rolled away and hit the wall, dazed and merely whimpering as black spots started to dance in his already blurry vision.

Prentiss stared at him in shock and didn't dare to take a single step as the gun in the masked man's hand now wasn't pointed at her but at the skinny figure on the floor.

"Give me the phone now," he said once again, more slowly and with a horribly calm tone, "or I'll shoot him again, this time in the head."

She didn't have a choice. Carefully, she took a step forward and handled him her cell phone, then raised her hands as to give the sign of surrender.

"Good," the man said, walking back to Reid. "And can I have yours too?"

Without waiting for an answer he searched the young agent's pockets for his cell. When he found it he pulled it out victoriously then quickly backed away, gun still pointed at Reid but his words were addressed to Prentiss. "You saw it was he who looked for trouble. It's not my purpose to kill you, but don't think I won't do it if you act like this in the future."

With those words the man stormed out of the room, slammed the door and they could hear as he locked it from the outside.

"Reid!"

At last Prentiss could hurry to her injured teammate. Reid was lying on the floor next to the wall, still in a daze from the unsub's kicks and hardly noticing as Prentiss knelt beside him to examine his condition.

"Reid, can you hear me?" she asked as she took a close look at his leg. There was a small gunshot wound on his left thigh, just a bit above the knee. Fortunately it didn't hit the main artery, but blood was still flowing out of it at a remarkable pace. Prentiss didn't see an exit wound on the other side of Reid's leg, which meant the bullet was stuck somewhere inside, but she knew she wouldn't be able to get it out by herself. However, the positive thing was that he was bleeding from only one wound instead of two, though she knew they had to stop it somehow or Reid would lose a dangerous amount of blood. She quickly took off her scarf and tried to create a makeshift bandage around the young man's leg, putting pressure on the wound by pulling it tight with a knot. Reid cried out loud from the pain as she tied it, finally emerging from his dazed state.

"Prentiss" he stammered.

"Yes, I'm here Reid, don't worry," she answered, heart breaking at the sight of her colleague's pain.

"You... you okay?"

"Of course I'm okay genius; it's you I'm worried about. You shouldn't have messed with him, where did you get the crazy idea of attacking an armed man? Like you weren't a well-trained federal agent! Damn it, he could have killed you! And besides, I could have handled him alone."

"I'm sorry..." Reid apologized which made Prentiss smile. "I was afraid that he would hurt you... did you manage to finish the talk with Hotch?"

"Yeah, I did," she answered. "Right when he entered. But that isn't as good as it seems because Hotch now thinks we're all fine and leaving tomorrow morning. They will wait to pick us up at the turnoff..."

Reid turned to his side and tried to sit up, not moving his leg. It proved to be a pretty hard task as his aching body screamed in protest, but in the end with Prentiss' help he managed to prop his back against the wall and sit upright. He felt dizzy, his head was throbbing, and Prentiss saw an ugly dark spot forming on his cheek and another on the right side of his forehead.

"The crazy fellow locked the door it seems, so he probably won't let us go away free and even if we'd manage to escape, you can't walk long with your leg, so," Prentiss sighed, "we're in trouble, I presume."

"So we'll need a plan," Reid finished the sentence, slightly grinning through his pain.

* * *

Hotchner hung up the phone with a 'one less thing to worry about' sigh.

"Is everything okay?" Morgan asked.

"Yeah, they're fine" Hotch answered. "They've spoken to Hanson who was very kind and helpful but of course didn't know anything. They'll wait for us to pick them up at the spot where the road comes out of the forest."

"Great," Morgan said, then added with an ironic tone, "I'm really curious as to what this 'praying all the time in the middle of nowhere' kind of life is about. I bet they had a lot of fun."

Hotch merely shrugged and hurried away towards JJ.

**I know it's short but isn't a short chapter better than having more days to wait after that cliffhanger? :)**


	10. Chapter9:A Bottle of Water &Consequences

**A.N.: Sorry I was late again. I began my summer student work (or however it is called) on a dinosaur exhibition and I had to study a lot because I'm a guide there... They even made me work on my birthday, this Tuesday. In addition, here in Central Europe is awfully warm, I can hardly stand it... Okay I cut my complains so here's the next chapter.**

**Thanks to JustThinkHappyThoughts, SeeMeInTheShadows, the-vampire-act, Sue1313, cyn23, Rose-Harlowe and Foxgurl0000 for reviewing, and to REIDFANATIC for betaing!  
**

Chapter 9: A Bottle of Water & Consequences

It was getting darker as the evening slowly turned into night and the window of the cell was so small it didn't let much light inside.

They had been sitting quietly for a while. Prentiss had been trying desperately to find a way out of their uncomfortable situation but so far she hadn't found any except for fighting their captor when he came back. But that appeared to be pretty risky, considering that the man weighed almost as much as the two of them put together; plus he had a gun; plus Reid was injured. He obviously wasn't a threat to the guy in his current state. However, it didn't seem as though they had any other chance to escape, unless the masked gunman suddenly changed his mind and let them walk out free.

"You have any ideas?" she called out to Reid, hoping the young man had managed to plot something out with his genius brain. But there came no answer.

"Reid?" she called out louder with more anxiety as she looked towards her colleague. Reid was sitting by the opposite wall, his legs half stretched out, his head leaning forward a bit and he was staring blankly into the air. From a distance it almost looked like he was sleeping, but his eyes were open and his gaze was hazy and unfocused. It horribly reminded Prentiss of people who were in some kind of catatonic state.

"Reid!" her voice now betrayed her fright as she got up and hurried towards him. "Reid, answer me!"

"Wha... What?" the young doctor suddenly came to as she gently shook his shoulder.

"Are you okay?"

Reid swallowed and tried to focus on Prentiss' face.

"Yeah, um... yeah, just a bit... my leg hurts a bit." His voice faded away at the last words as if he felt ashamed for complaining.

Prentiss nodded and gently squeezed his shoulder to give him some comfort. "It'll be all right. We're going to get out of here. Don't worry."

Her comforting words managed to put a weak smile on Reid's face.

"Just try not to sleep" she continued "You might have a minor concussion from that bastard's kick."

"'Kay" he nodded absent-mindedly. "I'll be alright."

"Good"

To tell the truth, Reid wasn't feeling alright at all. His knee hurt like hell, with waves of searing pain kicking in every few seconds, even if he didn't move his leg. There was a dull ache in his head too, he still felt somewhat dizzy and he had to fight hard to keep his continually blurring vision focused. Even breathing was slightly painful on the spot where he'd been kicked. The memory of the big, masked guy was strangely hard to recall, as if everything happened at least years ago. He didn't even remember how he had the courage to stand there facing an armed man and not obeying him. He was, of course, thinking of Prentiss and how unprotected she looked with only a cell phone in her hand. _Damn it, a man is supposed to protect a woman! _That was exactly what he had realized at the moment he let Cyrus take her away and beat her up in La Plata County. _I failed then and now I've failed again_. _Thank God the guy decided not to hurt her psychically. We probably won't be so lucky next time._

As he was thinking and continually accusing himself the door suddenly opened again and the previous man's masked face peered inside. He only seemed to be there to check on his prisoners because after he threw a glance at both of them he stepped back and started to close the door. It was then Prentiss called after him.

"Hey! Wait!"

The door stopped halfway through its closing movement.

"Could you... could you bring us some disinfectant... or at least something that I can treat his wound with, please?"

There was one or two moments of silence, then the man laughed out loud.

"Sorry ma'am, but he was the one who looked for trouble. He can only thank himself for the situation he's in now. Don't expect me to help him."

The door started to close, but once again Prentiss stopped it.

"Wait! Please, at least bring some water!"

This time there came no answer. The man shut the door with a groan, locking it, and they could hear his heavy footsteps march away. Prentiss hoped that he'd do what she requested; it was their only chance.

"That's it, Reid, I have the plan," she turned to her colleague, barely daring to lift her voice above a whisper. "I'll hide behind the door, and when he comes back to give the water to you, I'll knock him down. Got it?"

"Hell, no way," Reid's eyes were big with worry and pain, "it's too risky. If he notices you're missing and something's wrong... Prentiss, he's twice your size."

"Oh, yeah, and twice _your_ size too, but it didn't stop you from provoking him, did it?" she retorted ironically. "But don't worry, he won't notice me. And when he does, it'll be too late. You just sit here and don't move, okay?"

"Shouldn't we both just sit here and wait for the others?" Reid asked, his cautious side coming out again. "When we don't turn up tomorrow morning at the road, Hotch will find out that something's wrong and they'll come here right away."

"I doubt that Hanson, or whoever this crazy bastard behind the mask is, couldn't make them believe that we're not here," Prentiss answered. "He'll probably hide the basement door by pulling some furniture over it… and I have a idea he's already hidden our cells in the woods so when they call us or Garcia tries to track us down... they'll think we're lost somewhere out there."

Reid wanted to say something, to continue the debate, but he was out of arguments. Prentiss went on, her voice softer and more anxious.

"Of course they would find us at last, but when? You're hurt, Reid, you need to get to a hospital, and we don't have days to spare."

She was already searching through the pile of construction debris in the corner for an appropriate piece. Finding one, she grabbed it with her right hand and headed for the door, standing next to it in a position so that the opening door would completely hide her.

Just then they heard the footsteps again, slowly coming down the stairs and approaching the entrance of the room. Moments later, the door opened and the man stepped inside. He didn't have his gun now, instead there was a bottle of water in his hand. He took a couple of steps towards Reid who pretended to be unconscious, but his heart was beating so wildly he was afraid the guy would hear it too.

The man suddenly came to a halt, noticing that someone was missing, but Prentiss was already behind his back, having sneaked up to him like a hunting cat, and before he could look around in the room, she lifted her arm to strike.

But she was one second late.

The man saw her out of the corner of his eye and spun around in less than a second, dodging her attack and grabbing her arm at the same time, making her drop the debris and cry out in pain.

"What did you think, bitch?" he hissed as he pushed her against the wall. One hand was still squeezing her wrist; the other hand dropped the bottle and grabbed Prentiss' neck.

"Do you think you can handle me?" he yelled in her face.

She gasped for breath as the man tightened his grip. She tried to pull away with her free hand but it was useless, he was much stronger. Soon it became difficult to breathe, and suddenly a weird thought sprang to her mind. What a shame would that be for an FBI agent to die in a dusty basement, by the very hands of the unsub, how ridiculous it would look in her file… but then all of a sudden her neck was released and the man in front of her simply collapsed on the ground.

Prentiss took in massive gulps of air and massaged her neck as she stared at the guy on the floor, completely confused. Then she saw the cause of his fall: Reid was standing a little farther, with the piece of debris in his hand. He was sweating, panting heavily and looked like he too was about to collapse. Prentiss hurried to support him.

"You okay?" he asked.

"It's still me out of the two of us who is more okay" she replied, almost grinning.

A sudden groan from the man lying on the floor startled them.

"Let's get out of here while he's down," said Prentiss, quickly escorting Reid out of the room. " I'm afraid he isn't fully knocked-out. And thank you, by the way... I don't know how he saw me."

"I told you it was risky," Reid closed his eyes in pain as his colleague dragged him towards the stairs, trying not to place weight on his injured leg, but it seemed almost impossible at the speed Prentiss was moving.

**I stopped myself writing another cliffhanger... but I think it's okay. Next one will come soon. Don't forget to review if you liked it!:) You make me so enthusiastic by that. FFV**


	11. Chapter 10: Fugitives

**A.N.: Sorry for the delay again. DocX had been playing a trick on us. I'll try to post the following chapters more often.**

**Thanks to JustThinkHappyThoughts, Foxgurl0000, Sue1313, cyn23, SeeMeInTheShadows, the-vampire-act and SpecialParanoia for reviewing and to REIDFANATIC for beta-reading.  
**

Chapter 10: Fugitives

"Come on Reid, hold on a little longer!" Prentiss hissed between her teeth as they finally made their way up the stairs. It was quite a struggle for both of them. Prentiss tried her best to take as much of Reid's weight as possible, but even with her support he was white as a sheet, sweating profusely and slightly swaying on his feet as they reached the top.

"Come on, it's only a little further," she kept reassuring him, "we have to get out of here; we can rest then..."

But a sudden yell proved her wrong. They had only advanced a couple of yards away from the house when it reached their ears, a bit muffled as if it came from the basement, but it was clear whom the voice belonged to: their captor, who was supposed to be lying unconscious.

"Get them! They're escaping! GET 'EM!!!"

"I thought he was alone," Reid's frightened voice came out as soft as a whisper.

Prentiss merely nodded and started to drag him faster. She knew that their only chance of escaping was hiding in the forest. It was completely dark now, a very late winter afternoon and the darkness among the trees seemed even thicker and denser.

As soon as they reached the safety of the woods, they heard running footsteps and shouting behind their backs; flashlights were already searching the forest for the fugitives.

"Come on!" Prentiss panted and dragged the two of them further. Reid was already out of breath and each step sent a jolt of pain through his left leg from the foot right up to the waist. He didn't even dare to think about how long they could hold on before they were found; he knew that Hanson and his men wouldn't give up easily on the hunt and they could obviously move faster than he and Prentiss. Plus they had flashlights, as the approaching twinkling indicated, while the agents were stumbling into complete darkness in front of them, their feet repeatedly colliding with rocks and tree roots and their faces being scratched by branches.

Suddenly Reid tripped over something and fell immediately as his injured leg couldn't take it any more. Prentiss was pulled down with him, but she reacted quickly. With one hand she rolled Reid over onto his side and held down his arm to prevent him from moving, her other hand was quickly put on the young agent's mouth just in time to muffle his cry of pain.

"Shh, stay still, don't move, don't make a sound," she whispered in his ear, hoping desperately that Hanson's men didn't hear them. To her surprise Reid immediately obeyed and shut up. Prentiss saw him struggling not to cry out from the pain again, his entire body was trembling and she could feel his rapid, hot breaths on her hand.

* * *

The man gritted his teeth in fury and his hand wandered to the spot on his head where the kid had hit him. It was throbbing. _Damn, that skinny bastard will pay for it, that's for sure..._

"We can't let them escape," he told the other two who'd gathered at his shouting. "They couldn't have got too far anyway."

He gestured for them to start searching the forest in two opposite directions while he himself entered the darkness of the woods, holding his flashlight at the ready. He tried to make as little noise as possible; he chose to track them down as the hunter tracks down his prey. Every five steps or so he stopped and held his breath, listening to the forest, hoping that he would eventually hear the two agents' desperate attempt to flee. _Shit, they MUST make some noise running blind,_ he thought, but there was only deep silence all around him.

"Come on, Miss Prentiss, come on, Mr. Reid," he unconsciously muttered into the darkness. "I will find you eventually but if you just come to me peacefully, I promise I won't hurt you!"

Still there was no answer, only the wind that was blowing coldly, making the branches rustle mysteriously.

* * *

Reid shut his eyes tightly as the pain in his knee became almost unbearable after it hit the ground when he fell. He felt Prentiss kneel next to him, felt her hand over his mouth and knew that he mustn't make a single sound. The hunters were still out there somewhere, looking for them. They saw Hanson's (or whoever he was) flashlight merely a couple of yards away and they didn't dare to move a muscle fearing that they'd be found.

After long minutes that seemed more like hours they couldn't hear the men's footsteps anymore. Prentiss slowly took away her hands from Reid and stood up, ears still sensitive to any sound coming from the forest. When she felt sure they were relatively alone, she squatted back to her colleague.

"It's okay," she whispered "I think they're gone. You can get up."

But Reid didn't answer. He lay still on his back, staring up to the sky, his eyes hazy and his breaths short and ragged.

"Reid? Say something please!" Prentiss begged in sudden fear. She touched the young agent's forehead: it was unnaturally hot and sweaty in spite of the cold air.

Reid finally turned his gaze to her. "It's... it's my leg," he stammered "I think it's bleeding again."

Prentiss turned her attention to his leg. Sure as he'd said, she noticed that the makeshift bandage, the scarf, was no longer tight around his knee: it was hanging loosely down at his shin, soaked with blood and so was Reid's pant leg, from the knee right down to his shoe. _Damn, _she thought, _the kid must have lost a lot of blood already._

She quickly unwrapped the scarf and tied it again around her colleague's knee, even tighter this time, feeling heartbroken at Reid's cry of pain.

"I'm sorry, I'm sorry," she hurried to apologize, "but we have to stop the bleeding."

"Okay," Reid nodded. The pain, as always, helped him to stay conscious and more alert.

"We have to find the road, then we can easily get back to town. Can you stand?"

"I think it was Hanson," came the answer.

"What?"

"It must have been him." Reid muttered to himself, but Prentiss noticed that his gaze was clear again.

"I don't know;" she said, "could be one of his followers as well. That Chris or Martin or whatever they're called…"

"No, Hanson's in charge," Reid argued, "he ordered the others to come after us. If he's the boss in religion, he's the boss in this too.

"We have no proof."

"He lied about being alone there! He didn't want us to know that he could outnumber us if he chose!"

"Still no proof." Prentiss skeptically shook her head.

"There's more," Reid interrupted "I saw that perfume in his room."

"What perfume?"

"You know. The one I smelled on the victims."

"Well that's something now, but I still wouldn't call it proof." Prentiss teased.

"He saw it, Prentiss!" he insisted. "That I found the bottle. And I saw his eyes…"

"And I think you're starting to get a bit obsessed with that perfume. It's probably a popular brand here…"

A branch cracked loudly somewhere near them. Prentiss snapped up her head nervously and motioned Reid to be silent. They listened for a couple of minutes but no other sounds were heard.

"All right, we'll discuss it later," she said softly, half whispering, "when we get to somewhere safe. Can you stand?"

Reid nodded, not daring to answer aloud. With Prentiss' help he was shortly on his feet, swaying and sweating but ready to go.


	12. Chapter 11: In Lack of Luck

**A.N.: Surprise! Since you had to wait so much for the previous chapter I decided to speed things up a bit.**

**Thanks to the-vampire-act, JustThinkHappyThoughts, Sue1313, cyn23 and Neko-Tiara for reviewing and to REIDFANATIC for beta-reading!  
**

Chapter 11: In Lack of Luck

"It's getting cold," Prentiss established.

Sure as she said, the icy February night was surrounding them with frosty air and a strong wind which was blowing ruthlessly into their faces. If it hadn't been completely dark, they would have even been able to see the white fume of their breaths steaming in the air in front of them.

But Reid already knew for a long time now that it was cold. In fact, he was freezing. They should have brought their coats but unfortunately they were left at the sanctuary.

"Yeah," he stammered out an answer. "Are you sure that this is the direction we should go?"

"Yeah, yeah, I'm pretty sure," Prentiss nodded, but she didn't appear to be so confident "we came from the house." She motioned into the forest behind their backs, "But it wasn't the main building we exited. It points to the west... so now we have to turn to the right gradually in order to reach the meeting point."

Reid felt too tired to argue. Instead he simply trusted his colleague's sense of locality and continued to limp on her heels, trying to keep up the speed. His leg was now throbbing with a more bearable, constant, dull pain, and he could somewhat avoid hurting it more by putting the least weight possible on it.

It was getting colder and colder by the moment as they advanced forward. Reid was shivering, though his cheeks felt strangely hot; the icy air was stinging his nose and throat, and even Prentiss felt the wind get under her clothes, right down to the skin and she felt goose bumps forming on her back.

There was no sound around them except for the howling wind and the whispering branches. Either Hanson had given up on searching after them, or he was searching somewhere else, because no footsteps could be heard, not the faintest one.

"When had it started snowing?" Reid asked, his mouth hardly able to move due to the cold.

Prentiss stopped and looked up to the sky. He was right: small, white flakes were pouring from above, more and more; they sank into their hair and clothes, melting immediately but replacements kept coming.

"I don't know," she answered. "You know, I've always loved snow, I've been thinking that it gives some good, some comfortable feeling of winter, but now I don't really find it so nice."

Reid smiled as he put his arms around himself to conserve as much body heat as he could.

"Hey Prentiss," he called, after a couple minutes of silent marching, "let me ask you something."

"Huh?"

"What do we do when we reach the road? I mean, it's only about eight or nine o'clock and they aren't coming for us until tomorrow morning."

"I've been thinking about that," she replied. "We should try to stop someone and ask for a ride into town."

"And what if Hanson is watching the road?" Reid asked anxiously. "He didn't look like the kind of man to me who would let us get away so easily."

Prentiss didn't answer. He was right, again. There was a threat that Hanson's men were really watching the road, because it was obviously probable that they would appear somewhere around there, but they hardly had any other options. They could stay hidden in the forest and freeze to death till the morning came, and that was all. But Reid needed to see a doctor soon and they couldn't wait for that ride to town.

"We'll need some luck, t..." Prentiss started, but at that very moment the ground suddenly disappeared from under their feet, as if it was pulled away like a carpet.

* * *

He distantly remembered falling, then hitting the ground, then rolling down some kind of hill, then coming to a halt again. But everything was in a blur and it felt like it had happened years ago; his brain was so numb it couldn't put the information together.

Some time passed. He slowly became aware that he was not levitating in nothingness like he'd imagined earlier, he wasn't even standing but lying. After some more time, it became clearer that the thing he was lying on was pretty hard and rough and cold!

_Where am I?_

His brain wasn't working as he wanted it to. Bringing up even the slightest piece of memory required incredibly great effort, and even if he succeeded, he couldn't make any sense of it. Why had he been walking in the forest at all?

He didn't know how much time had passed when he noticed that something little, white and cold fell on his face, a snowflake. It was snowing...

_What the hell am I doing in the forest, lying on my back, half-covered in snow, and most of all, alone?_

Then he remembered. He was _not _alone.

Prentiss. _Where is Prentiss?_

* * *

She awoke with a moan, not really realizing that the sound already left her mouth before waking up fully.

Her head was pounding; she must have banged it into something while falling.

It took a couple of seconds to recall what happened. In the dark they must have reached a ravine and not seeing its edge, they'd simply walked right into it. Prentiss wondered how deep it was, and how they would get out of it, if they could get out of it at all.

Her second thought was Reid. She quickly sat up, ignoring her head that protested with hardening aching and looked around in search of the young agent. She spotted him right away: he was lying motionless a few feet away, looking unconscious.

"Reid!" she called anxiously as she approached and knelt next to him.

There came no answer. She noticed that the young agent's eyes were half open, but he didn't seem very aware of his surroundings. Only the tiny, pale fumes of his breaths told her that he was alive.

"Come on, say something!" she urged him and shook his shoulder to make him regain consciousness. _He probably has a concussion now,_ she thought, _if he hadn't already had one from that bastard's kicks. Like it wasn't already bad enough for him to have a gunshot wound..."_

Reid suddenly began to blink and then shortly after, to cough.

"It's okay, Reid, can you see me?" Prentiss asked, patting his shoulder to calm him.

"I'm... cold," he answered in a hoarse voice.

"Are you hurt somewhere?"

Reid nodded and closed his eyes. "My head... I think I've hit it."

Prentiss noticed blood on his temple and in his hair, and her heart twitched in anxiety.

"It's okay," she reassured herself more than her colleague. "Head wounds usually look worse than they really are. I'm far more worried about the cold."

"What happened?" Reid asked as he tried to sit up, every muscle in his back aching.

"I guess we fell down in a ravine" she replied. "I didn't see it in the dark, I'm sorry…"

Reid suddenly felt strange. For a moment he couldn't tell what it was. He thought it had something to do with Prentiss' words, but then it hit him: the pain in his left leg was completely gone. He didn't feel the gunshot wound sending radiating waves of pain up his thigh, he didn't feel anything. Not even the cold. Not even when he tried to move it.

"Prentiss" he called, stammering.

"Yeah?"

"I can't feel my legs."

**Wooo cliffy! I bet you hate me now...:D Have a nice day!;)**


	13. Chapter 12: Let Her in

**A.N. I wanted to post it a couple of days ago but FanFiction had some problems and I couldn't even log in.**

**Since it's a winter fic written in summer it's probably hard to imagine now how cold can it be out in a February forest... so everyone, listen to Ice Queen by Within Temptation! Haha, long live North-European metal...:D**

**Thanks to rinswan, cyn23, Lilithakaducky, the-vampie-act, JustThinkHappyThoughts and Sue1313 for reviewing and to REIDFANATIC for beta-reading!  
**

Chapter 12: Let Her in

Prentiss literally felt her heart skip a beat.

"What?" For a brief moment she hoped that she had misheard him.

"My legs," Reid repeated in a more panicking voice, "I can't feel them!"

He reached for his thighs with his hands as if making sure they hadn't disappeared completely and tried desperately to sit up at the same time, which, due to the lack of feeling in his legs, failed pitifully.

"Hey, hey cool down," Prentiss soothed him, grabbing his shoulder as his flails became more and more violent and his shallow breathing quickened. "Just cool down. Let me examine you."

To her surprise Reid immediately obeyed, getting tired with fear and the unsuccessful attempts of sitting up; instead he closed his eyes and tried to calm his breathing.

Prentiss turned her attention to the young agent's legs. She couldn't see any further injuries apart from the gunshot wound. Of course she knew that it might be an injury to the spinal column that caused lack of feeling in the legs; she dreaded to even think of that possibility. She only hoped that it's just a side effect of the recent trauma of falling. She carefully touched his right ankle and looked at him to see if there was any reaction.

"Do you feel that?"

Reid didn't answer, only shut his eyes tighter and shook his head.

Prentiss grabbed the other ankle, squeezing it harder this time. "That?"

Again a silent 'no'. She tried his right knee this time, pushing even stronger. Still nothing. Reid finally opened his eyes and glared at her in panic, his gaze full of fear and helplessness. It almost broke Prentiss' heart, but she decided to try the last chance.

She reached for a little above his left knee, right where the wound was, grabbed and squeezed it hard.

All of a sudden, Reid's whole body jerked and he screamed out loud as the unexpected pain exploded in his knee, sending almost unbearable waves of agony up his spine.

Prentiss felt so relieved at the sound of his cry that she even forgot to apologize for the caused pain. "It's all right, kid, you got it," she smiled at him. "I knew it was only your gorgeous mind playing tricks on you."

Reid nodded at her words semi-consciously. He had somehow managed to avoid losing consciousness in the previous seconds, but it cost him an enormous effort, and now he felt too incredibly tired to even turn his head. But the pain didn't let him fall asleep. It kept radiating more powerfully than before, and he felt nauseous just at the thought of having to move his legs in order to get up.

Just like she had found out his thoughts, she put an arm under his shoulders and tried to help him up.

"Come on, you have to get up now," she egged him on, "you can't stay here lying on the ground, it's very cold, and I think you already have a fever."

His eyes were hazy as he looked back at her, admitting in his subconscious that she was right, but he was _so_ tired and in pain, that he just wanted to stay there lying, wherever he was, and sleep until the pain and cold are finally gone.

"Do you want to keep going?" he asked, barely sounding louder than a whisper.

"Not so much," she calmed him, "We just gotta get out of this ravine, it's very wet down here. We'll find a dryer place; sit down, get some rest, wait till it gets brighter, then look for the road. I don't think we should continue in the dark, in fact we're probably lost a bit. I'm not sure which direction we were heading before we fell..."

"Finding a dryer place will be kinda hard I presume," Reid chuckled as she finally managed to pull him onto his feet, and started to drag him along the wall of the ravine. "The ground is snowy everywhere."

It was still snowing, and snowflakes came down on them in a thick, windy maelstrom. It didn't look like it was going to stop soon. Reid was now visibly shivering in his whole body from the cold, and even Prentiss started to feel herself freeze.

Tired and limping, they slowly made their way upwards, fighting the elements that were cruelly unleashed on them by nature.

* * *

_A warm, dimly lit room with a fireplace by one of the walls, its flames crackling pleasantly. It was the nicest sound he'd ever heard._

_He was lying on the bed, under heavy and warm blankets that smelled like they were freshly pulled out of the washing machine. The scent reminded him of some kind of flower, he couldn't really recall which one._

_Everything was so peaceful and quiet. He felt like he could lie there in the bed forever, with the flower-scented sheets and the nicely crackling sound of the fire. They gave him comfort. They gave him the biggest comfort in the world._

_Am I alone?_

_No, it seemed to him that some of his team members were in the room too. He hadn't noticed them until now. Since everything was blurry, they looked more like ghosts, but he didn't mind it now. He recognized Hotch standing next to his bed, staring down at him, then JJ, a couple feet away. And someone was sitting in the chair near the fireplace; it was most likely Rossi but it could be Morgan too, he couldn't see it properly._

_But suddenly he could see something, distant but sharp, and it was terrifying him. A face was pressed to the window in the other wall – from the outside. It was a woman's face and he knew even before recognizing her that it was Prentiss._

_Why was she out there while everyone else was inside?_

"_Let her in," he told Hotch and tried to gesture towards the window, but soon it became clear to him that he'd probably only managed to mumble incoherently and his hand had barely stirred under the blankets._

"_Let her in," he tried harder this time, gathering all his strength. Hotch obviously had to hear that now, maybe didn't understand but had to notice that he wanted to say something._

_But Hotch stood there unresponsive, still looking down, eyes not moving._

"_Let her in!"_

_When had everybody gone deaf? He started to panic. Maybe they weren't even real. Maybe his mind was overworking again. But then, what was real?_

_The scent, it smelled real. And now he recognized it: it was the perfume the murdered women used. It's the Scent of Awakening..._

_Awakening..._

Suddenly he found himself roughly shaken awake. It was like crashing into ice cold water after long minutes of blissful floating. It all came back instantly: the cold, the wind, the pain.

Prentiss was shaking his shoulder and kept calling his name.

"What?" he mumbled in a raspy voice.

"Try not to fall asleep," she told him and ceased the shaking as she saw that he was finally awake.

"And why not?" Reid demanded almost angrily. He found it very cruel of her not letting him slip into that blissful state where he could ignore the pain and the cold.

"Because," she replied and lifted Reid's chin with her hand as his head fell down sleepily to his chest, "you probably have a concussion judging by that nasty head gash of yours, and..."

"My head feels fine," Reid lied.

"...and if you're asleep, your body can fight less effectively against the cold," she finished the sentence, ignoring the interruption.

Reid silently admitted that she was right. He was still violently shaking from the icy weather that kept on assaulting them, and the fact that they were sitting between the roots of a giant tree, huddled up against each other to keep each other as warm as possible, barely helped him.

"Only three hours until dawn," Prentiss announced, "if I am not mistaken."

Reid merely nodded and blinked heavily. He wanted to sleep and it was hard to fight against it. He had to tear himself away from returning to that comfortable, warm place, back here in the freezing hell.

He knew he had a fever. His head was pounding; not only where he hit it but everywhere. He was extremely cold, and he knew that with a single sweater and massive blood loss he would soon be developing hypothermia, if he hadn't started already. The only positive thing was that he could barely feel the pain in his leg – actually he couldn't decide whether he was feeling it or he was just imagining. _But is it really a positive thing?_ He asked himself. This question now seemed equally as difficult as the previous one.

Slowly, his eyes closed again.

**Now... how are they gonna get out of this? I mean... alive? :D**


	14. Chapter 13: On the Edge

**A.N.:No comment for this one! Have fun;)**

**Thanks to Lilithakaducky, Sue1313, JustThinkHappyThoughts, the-vampire-act, cyn23, SeeMeInTheShadows, angeleyes46 and Foxgurl0000 for reviewing. You guys really make me happy and give me a lot of motivation! And of course thanks to good old REIDFANATIC for betaing.  
**

Chapter 13: On the Edge

It definitely wasn't easy for them. And Prentiss found it getting worse and worse by the minute.

Nature seemed to spill all its rage on them. The blizzard simply didn't want to stop, the level of the snow on the ground around them, on their clothes and in their hair was increasing visibly. She softly cursed the exaggerated mountain weather under her nose as she kept nudging and poking Reid, trying to prevent him from falling asleep.

And there was one more thing for Prentiss to worry about. She was shivering, but the kid had already stopped doing so which meant he was one step ahead of her on the way to hypothermic shock. Obviously his blood loss had quickened the progress. His face was paler than ever, his eyes closed, only the barely visible movement of his chest and the tiny breath fumes reported that he was still alive. Maybe it was only her imagination, but she could even see his lips starting to turn a bluish tinge, but it was hard to tell due to the darkness.

The darkness didn't show the signs of any intent to fade away and give place to daylight. Prentiss felt like it was the longest night of her life – though she had been spending many nights keeping vigil over unsolved case files.

Earlier she thought that if they could somehow make it to the road, they would be able to get back to town from there and call help, or even if they had luck (and she hoped they would) a car would stop and give them a ride. But now they were lost in the middle of nowhere, with no idea which direction that bloody road was, and with Reid's worsening condition they were not in the position to allow themselves to go exploring the landscape.

In her mind, she carefully went over and over the events of the past few hours, rolling through them again and again, for about the thousandth time. As a profiler, she wanted to analyze every step, every move of their criminal – and of themselves. Could they have somehow acted differently, that wouldn't have ended them in their current situation? Did they have any other choice? Their captor was mad. Reid was scared, she could clearly see the horror in his eyes as in his mind he recalled his time with Tobias Henkel. He was obviously afraid that their captor would do things like that to Prentiss.

She almost smiled at the thought that the kid, even though he was the younger of the two of them, felt the urge to defend her. Because she was a woman and women need to be protected by men. She knew him well enough to be able to read his eyes. And she knew as well, that after the incident with Cyrus, his guilt had just strengthened. But it was now a lot more that Reid had given for her safety than some beating and a couple of kicks.

Maybe... maybe they could have stayed put in that basement and waited until tomorrow morning when Hotch and the others would have come to the meeting point and, not finding them there, would obviously have gone to the first and only place that occurred to them to look – Hanson's sanctuary. But what if the masked man was already waiting for them? What if he wanted to slaughter them all like... What if...?

She suddenly found herself jerking awake; she must have drifted off to sleep, which was no doubt due to the cold and tiredness. The first thing she noticed was that it was dawning: the blizzard had stopped, everything around them was thick with silence and covered in deep snow; and the sky was slowly turning to light gray.

The second thing was Reid. The young agent was still sitting next to her, leaning half on her, half on the tree supporting their backs, head lolling to the chest.

"Reid!" she almost cried loudly and tried to shake her friend awake. His skin felt unnaturally cold, there was snow in his hair and on his shoulders, and in the dawning light Prentiss could now clearly see that his lips had started turning blue.

"Reid!" she cried and shook him more desperately.

Slowly, his eyes opened. He blinked several times; it seemed that he had difficulty even keeping his eyes open.

"That's it, Reid, come on!" She went on calling him, hoping that it would help him to get back to wakefulness.

"Whadda...?" he managed to stammer.

Prentiss looked at her watch. It was ten minutes after seven; the team would come for them in fifty minutes. It was high time to get up and start searching for the road.

"We have to find the road, remember?"

It took some time for Reid to comprehend the meaning of the words. "An' howd'we 'anage that?" he asked at last, with a ridiculously disobedient tongue.

"Easy. Sun rises at the east. Hanson's house was south of the road. It leaves that we should head to northeast if we want to reach the turnout."

Reid merely nodded and prepared to fall back to sleep, but Prentiss' shook him back again. She was already on her feet, her limbs numb and stiff too, but she quickly exercised them a bit to help speed the blood circulation, then tried to make her teammate stand up too. First the younger agent found it simply impossible to move any part of his body at all, but when Prentiss somehow succeeded, he found that it wasn't as big a deal at all, since he again couldn't really feel his legs. This time it wasn't a complete lack of feeling, only a cold numbness, as if they had turned to stone; it was an effect of having them unmoving for a while, under the growing level of snow.

He managed to stand upright, but when it came to walking his legs suddenly didn't want to obey. His knees buckled under his weight and threatened to let him collapse. At the same time the world seemed to tilt, dizziness came over him in stronger and weaker waves, and he couldn't see straight. It felt to him like there was an earthquake or something, right at the moment he tried to take a step. Ground seemed to move wildly under his feet, and colorful spots that were apparently falling from the sky danced in front of his eyes.

But Prentiss was next to him. She carefully lifted his arm, put it around her shoulders and held there firmly. Her other hand was put around Reid's waist, to support him as much as she could, and she kept talking to him to encourage him walking on further and further.

* * *

Some time passed. Maybe a couple of minutes, maybe hours, he could no longer keep track of time. He barely even noticed that it wasn't nighttime anymore, that the sky was slowly lightening up.

"Come on, kid, you have to hold on!"

He heard Prentiss' voice muffled, somewhere in the distance. It was strange; Prentiss never called him 'kid'. Her voice kept on chasing him, ordering him to continue walking. He wanted so desperately to stop and lie down, but the voice prevented him from doing so. Deep inside his subconscious he knew that his condition was not the best, and his colleague's voice assured him that there still was someone around who cared about him and who knew better than he what to do, and he had no choice but to follow the orders.

He didn't feel the cold anymore. In fact, there were some parts of his body he couldn't feel at all, like the fingers and toes, but the others were hot and stinging with pain, especially the wound on his left thigh, which was becoming more and more painful.

"Come on, Reid, I can see the road!" Prentiss' excited voice barely reached his ears. He came to a halt and made an attempt to sit down carefully, before he would collapse like a rag doll. He was on the final edge of his strength, and it seemed unimaginable to go further.

"What are you doing?" Prentiss was nearly shouting next to him. Her voice hurt his eardrums; he wanted to back away from her and cover his head, but his limbs didn't obey his will. An unnatural numbness was slowly spreading from his fingers and toes towards his spine, he had the strange feeling that his whole body was turning to iron or some other cold, lifeless metal.

"We're almost there, Reid," Prentiss continued on begging him to keep walking. "Just thirty more steps. Thirty steps for me, come on!"

By now she was supporting most of Reid's weight as the younger agent threatened to collapse at any moment. He managed to take some more steps with great effort; every time he lifted his leg it felt like he was trying to lift a mass of stone.

She had no idea how, but they finally managed to approach the road, which was now right in front of them on a little higher ground level than the forest.

Exhausted and absolutely unable to walk more, Reid sank to the ground. Prentiss lowered him down gently, knowing that if help didn't come soon on the road, it would be over. His lips were now definitely showing a shade of blue, his eyes were closed, and he was breathing awfully slowly.

Anxiety gripped her throat as she knelt down next to him, one hand stroking his hair out of his face, the other massaging one of his arms; while her eyes were still desperately searching the road.

In the distance, the headlights of a car suddenly turned up on the horizon.

**But whose car is that? Guess...**


	15. Chapter 14: Sleep

**A.N.: Sorry for keeping you waiting so long again. I spent almost every day of the past two weeks working on the exhibition and the days I wasn't working I was taking driving lessons. But finally I have passed my driving exam and the exhibition is over so I have time now:) Happy reading!**

**Thanks to SeeMeInTheShadows, JustThinkHappyThoughts, Lilithakaducky, the-vampire-act, Sue1313, cyn23 and Foxgurl0000 for reviewing and to REIDFANATIC for betaing!!  
**

Chapter 14: Sleep

"Why they had to choose this early time of the day, I have no idea," JJ broke the silence with bald sleepiness in her voice.

Hotch was driving his black SUV dumbly on the greyly dawning road, with Morgan in the passenger's seat and JJ in the back. He didn't bother to answer, just drove apathetically.

"Dunno," Morgan shrugged, "but I'll make sure Reid pays for all our coffees when we get back."

"I'm cold," JJ went on complaining, "could you please turn up the heat a bit?"

"'Course" Hotch replied; he reached out a hand and did what he was asked.

"Why didn't you just stay in your room and sleep?" Morgan asked JJ.

"I definitely would have done that," she answered "but I have an meeting with Chief Trevors, again," she added with slight annoyance.

"Got it" Morgan nodded. "Hey, what's that on the road?" he suddenly pointed forwards.

"I rather think it's a who" Hotch corrected.

JJ leaned forward and saw a figure standing in the middle of the road in the distance. Not only standing there, but he seemed to be jumping and waving like a freak, a figure far too familiar for her eyes...

"What the...?"

"It's Emily," JJ announced. "But what's her problem?"

"Dunno," Morgan said, now his voice too sounded a little nervous. "And where's Reid?"

Hotch braked and parked the car on the edge of the road, as Prentiss came running towards them, pulling the passenger's seat door open even before Morgan had a chance to reach for the handle.

"Quick, come and help, come on!" she urged them.

"Hey, hey, cool down, what's wrong?" Morgan asked as he hurried to get out of the car.

Prentiss turned without answering and ran back a few feet towards the woods. "Come! Quick! We don't have time!"

"What the..." Morgan gasped as he saw Reid lying on the ground. Behind his back Hotch and JJ also emerged from the SUV.

"What the hell happened?"

"We have to take him to the hospital, now," Prentiss ordered, voice trembling as she knelt down again and placed a hand on Reid's cheek. "He's hypothermic."

Hotch quickly knelt down next to her and put his hand to Reid's neck to examine his pulse. "How long has he been like that?"

"I don't know, we arrived a couple of minutes ago, he was walking," Prentiss answered. "Now help me lift him up."

"Okay" Hotch nodded and slowly turned Reid onto his back, so that he could reach under his arms. With Morgan's help, the two men carefully lifted their younger colleague and took him to the vehicle.

"Sit with him in the back," Hotch ordered. "JJ, call the hospital and tell them we're coming."

They gently put Reid down on the middle seat, and then Morgan and JJ took their places on both sides of him, JJ already pushing buttons on her cell phone. Prentiss occupied the passenger's seat, and as soon as the team leader sat down behind the wheel, the black SUV sped off on the road towards the town.

* * *

"Now tell us what happened," Hotch said in his quiet, dry tone, his words addressed to Prentiss. She took a deep breath, not too sure where to begin. First, she looked back to see how her young teammate was doing.

Reid appeared to be semi-conscious. His face was buried in JJ's shoulder, and she was busy caressing his hair and whispering in his ear not to give up, while Morgan kept patting his 'little brother's' other shoulder, and tried to get a full view of his condition.

"Geez, what the hell happened to his leg?" he gasped as he noticed the dried blood on Reid's pant leg. He took down his coat and tried to wrap it around Reid to give him some warmth. The young agent whimpered and looked like he attempted to say something, but he could hardly even open his eyes.

"It's okay, it's okay, Spence," JJ soothed him.

"He was shot by a man who attacked us," Prentiss started to explain.

"What?"

"It all started after we talked on the phone. A guy came in, his face was masked. He had a gun and demanded we hand over our cells. I wanted to talk him down, to find out what he wanted and most of all, who he was, but Reid got scared. I think he was afraid that the guy would hurt me, so he tried to stop him. They fought, and... he got shot."

Morgan shook his head in disbelief. Even though he was really worried about his teammate, he wondered how Reid could act so stupid. He was an FBI agent, he had been in situations like that, yet he was stupid enough to provoke an armed man?

"Go on," Hotch nodded impatiently to Prentiss.

"He locked us in the room," she continued, "we were there for a couple of hours. I had no idea what his plans were with us, Reid needed help with his injury and since we didn't have the cells, we couldn't reach you. In fact, he could have hidden them somewhere in the woods or dropped them off the road a couple of miles away, so when you tried to track us... well you wouldn't have found us. So we decided to try to escape."

"And how did you manage that?" Morgan interrupted.

"I asked for a bottle of water... and when he returned, we... well Reid took him down."

"Reid?" Morgan's brows were now at the top of his forehead.

"Yeah..." she flushed a bit, "because I made a mistake and he almost strangled me."

"Geez if I get this guy..." Morgan clenched his fists with pure anger.

Reid moaned again.

"Shh, it's okay," JJ whispered to him. "Try not to go to sleep, you hear me? How much farther to the hospital?" she asked the others.

"We're almost there," Hotch answered and stepped on the gas even though the first houses of Riverwood had just started to appear against the dawning sky.

Finally, after minutes that seemed to be hours, the car pulled aside and stopped in front of the hospital gate. There were nurses and doctors waiting for them outside with a stretcher, and as soon as the SUV stopped, they hurried towards the door. Moments later, Reid was laid down comfortably on the stretcher and was being wheeled to safety; while the other members of the team were left alone, standing outside the doors with anxiety and fear in their hearts.

"Come on, let's get inside and wait," Hotch finally managed to say. He started walking towards the door; the others followed him obediently.

**Well those of you who thought help comes on the road were right! But the story isn't over yet...**


	16. Chapter 15: The Cold

**A.N.: Okay, this is supposed to be the 'hospital part'. Didn't see this one coming huh? Thanks to Sue1313, Foxgurl0000, tearbos, the-vampire-act and Lilithakaducky for reviewing and to REIDFANATIC for beta-reading.**

**WARNING!!! Everyone who wants Reid to be safe or doesn't want another cliffhanger around should not read under the break line! Read only at your own risk:))  
**

Chapter 15: The Cold

Reid was already awake for a while.

He had been watching Morgan and Garcia sleep on two hospital chairs by the wall, heads on each other's shoulder, and Hotch sleep in another chair. He didn't want to wake them. Who knew how many hours they'd spent waiting for him to come around; they definitely deserve some rest.

Anyway, he was lying very comfortably and it felt good to do nothing. His mind kept drifting away, jumping between seemingly random thoughts. It appeared to be afternoon; a clock on the wall showed a little after two, and through the window a part of the white sky was visible. It was snowing again.

He was lying there, very comfortable except for one thing, he was cold, almost freezing, actually. It felt like he had a fever, first he thought it was only that, but then pieces of memories started to return, one by one.

He wasn't cold because of some kind of flu. He spent the last night out in the winter forest, in a single sweater. He'd been _shot_ before that.

He could barely feel his leg. They must have given him something for the pain; he just hoped it wasn't any narcotics. He tried to move, but his leg barely stirred; he felt that the knee was heavily bandaged. He tried to reach for it, but his hands proved to be just as uncooperative. He noticed that both of them were bandaged too, although he couldn't remember hurting them. Then he slowly found out that they must have suffered frostbite. Great...

Finally Morgan started to stir, giving rise to a strange noise which reminded mostly of a sulky cat's meow from Garcia. Reid couldn't help but grin.

"Now look who are the sleepy heads," he teased. His voice was raspy and his throat felt extremely dry, so his comment didn't sound much louder than a whisper, but it reached his colleagues' ears.

"Hey, kid, you're awake," Morgan yawned, got up and pulled his chair next to the bed. Garcia, of course, awoke too; she blinked around like a resentful five-year-old, the line of her mouth curving downwards. But as she saw the cause of the disappearance of her 'pillow', a bright smile lightened up her face and she jumped up to follow Morgan's pattern.

"Hey sugar, how are you feeling?" she asked excitedly.

"I'm freezing," was Reid's short answer. Sure, he almost started to feel his teeth clatter. "Can I… Could you bring me some blankets?"

"Honey there're already three covering you," Garcia said, surprised.

"Doctor said it's natural," Morgan added. "You're gonna feel like this for a while. It takes time for your body to re-adjust to normal temperature."

Reid closed his eyes in disappointment. "Great…"

"Is there anything else you'd like?" She asked, "chocolate, cherry pie? The cafeteria here has a pretty wide assortment. Believe me, I've already checked!" She winked.

Reid smiled. "No, thanks, just a glass of water, if you don't mind."

"Of course I don't," she cut him off in a singsong voice and got up immediately. With that movement she seemed to awaken Hotch, who yawned too and then took his place on the other side of the bed.

"Welcome back, Reid."

Reid turned to him. "What happened?"

"Well kid," Morgan sighed, "you nearly gave us a heart attack. We brought you in with serious hypothermia; your body temp was around 87 degrees."

Garcia returned with the glass of water and handed it to Reid, who reached gratefully for it. But when he tried to grab the glass, he suddenly found that his fingers wouldn't do as he wants them. The glass slipped out of his hand and fell to the floor, breaking immediately and sending water and pieces of shards all around.

"I'm sorry," Reid stuttered, his mouth partly open in confusion.

"It's okay, sugar, happens to everyone," Garcia shook her head, smiling. "Don't worry, I'll clear it up."

Hotch cleared his throat, but somehow it seemed like he was rather amused. "Your fingers and toes suffered frostbite, so try not to move them much for a while."

Reid looked at his bandaged hands absently. They barely wanted to move. If he'd been out there much longer the doctors probably wouldn't have been able to save them… he felt chills running down his spine.

"And they took out the bullet from your left knee," Hotch went on. "It has slightly damaged the joint. Doctors said you were lucky; your knee will need at least one more surgery but there's a big chance that it will recover fully. You're currently on a high dose of antibiotics to help you fight off an infection; you're probably running a fever but thank God you've managed to avoid developing pneumonia."

"Where is JJ?" Reid asked, suddenly not being too interested in his own medical condition. "I… remember she was there some time…"

"Yeah, she kind of kept you awake in the car," Morgan laughed. "She and Rossi are with Prentiss."

"Oh," Reid blushed, "and how is Prentiss?"

"She's much better than you, for sure. She only had some cuts and much less severe hypothermia. Yours was worse because of the blood loss."

"When can we check out?" Reid asked impatiently, hating the idea of having to lie still and helpless while a criminal was still walking free somewhere outside.

"Whoa, kid, not so fast," Morgan smiled, "doctors say you need a lot of rest. The next knee surgery will most likely be scheduled after a week, until then you shouldn't move it very much."

_A week?_ Reid could hardly believe his ears. Was he really supposed to lie here all the time while the team continued searching for the Unsub?

His team members could obviously see the desperation on his face, because Hotch spoke up, "Don't worry Reid, we won't leave you alone. We'll be here with you as much of time as we can. And, of course we're counting on you helping solve the case."

Reid looked up at his boss with grateful eyes. "Thanks Hotch but how am I gonna be a help if I can't even get up from here?"

"Man that was a stupid question," Morgan shook his head, still smiling, "your leg might be injured but your mind is fine. I daresay that's what we needed in the first place."

Reid himself couldn't help but smile too. The thought that his colleagues hadn't given up on him gave him comfort and filled him with gratitude.

"And by the way," Hotch added, "the doctors will allow you to leave bed after a day or two. You're obviously not allowed to walk but in a wheelchair we can take you to the conference room or to Trevors' office or anywhere you're needed."

"Yeah but you have to promise to rest a lot today and tomorrow, honey," Garcia added, with a serious expression that was so unusual on her face.

"Promise," Reid nodded to her willingly, already starting to feel tired.

"Then you can start it now," she said, noticing his exhaustion immediately.

"We'll come back around six in the evening," Hotch said, "and we'll bring JJ."

"That'll be great," Reid mumbled sleepily. He was starting to feel strange; the freezing cold was slowly changing into some kind of feverish hotness, but he didn't mind it. All he wanted to do at the moment was to sleep deeply and unconsciously.

He was already halfway there when the other three quietly stood up and left the room.

* * *

The hours of wakefulness passed extremely slowly. Reid was bored and couldn't do anything with himself. Though the team had promised to spend as much time as possible with him, they couldn't sit every single minute by his bedside. Reid slept a lot but he couldn't sleep a whole day over. In fact, he couldn't spend too much time neither sleeping nor being awake. After one or two hours he got tired and went to sleep, but after a couple of hours he woke up again, unable to rest more. The warmth and the cold still kept flooding through him one after the other. He knew it was caused by the fever and he tried to ignore it. And these times when he was awake but no one was there to visit him were the worst of all. Reid just lay there staring at the blank wall while flashbacks of the previous night invaded his mind. He couldn't recall the whole night, only moments of it: him and Prentiss sitting in the snow, running blind in the darkness while flashlights were twinkling behind their backs, falling, hitting his knee and the pain… His leg still ached, though he received a huge amount of painkillers, the flashbacks brought back the memory of the pain and it was almost like feeling it physically.

It happened a little before noon. Reid was semi-conscious, not even knowing whether he just awoke or he was about to fall asleep; he distantly noticed that someone entered the room. _It must be someone from the team, _he thought. _At last, it was high time, I was getting extremely bored._

But the person didn't pull a chair to his bedside as his team members would have done; instead he started to fiddle with Reid's IV bags.

_Just a nurse, maybe you'll have better luck next time, _Reid thought to himself, and looked up at the nurse. That was when he realized that something was wrong. The nurse, though he was wearing the white hospital robe, was horribly familiar. And then Reid recognized the face.

"You…" he mumbled, waking up fully and staring in disbelief at the person leaning over him. "What…? No!"

The man pulled out the small piece of cloth so quickly Reid didn't have time to react, and the next moment it was pressed against the young agent's face. A familiar smell crept into his nose, he knew it was chloroform. Another hand caught him at the forehead and held his head down firmly, not letting him to turn it to the side. Reid tried to grab the arms to free himself but his fingers were still stiff and puffy and he couldn't even get a hold of his attacker. He kept on trying however, but the more desperately he fought, the more air he needed, and soon he felt the chloroform take effect on him. _I will need some help with this, _the thought flashed through his mind before it gave up the fight completely and the world turned to black.

The man dressed as a nurse put away the cloth as soon as his victim stopped moving. He pushed the wheelchair that he had brought with himself next to the bed, and looked around cautiously before pulling out the IVs from Reid's arm. Then he lifted up the young agent and carefully placed him in the wheelchair in a sitting position. Reid's head lolled to the side but it looked like he was only sleeping.

The attacker rubbed his hands, pleased. He grabbed the wheelchair and pushed it out of the room, humming softly to himself.

**I told you... didn't I?;)**


	17. Chapter 16: Must Find Something

**A.N.: Thanks for all the fantastic reviews! They make me very happy and give me a lot of motivation!**

**Some of you had mentioned that the team should be feeling guilty for not taking care of Reid... so here you go! I decided to write it so this chapter is a little more about the team and how they react. Have fun!**

**Thanks to Sue1313, ghostdolly, nathaloche130674, Lilithakaducky, the-vampire-act, KASEY64 and Foxgurl0000 for reviewing and to REIDFANATIC for betaing!  
**

Chapter 16: Must Find Something

"What do you mean, 'he's gone'?"

Prentiss sat on the edge of her hospital bed and stared at Morgan in disbelief.

"He's not in his bed and none of the doctors have moved him," he answered, pacing up and down the room, unable to stay still. "Hotch called security and they have locked down the building. If he's still here…"

"_If he's still here?_ Where the hell is he supposed to be in his condition if not in a hospital?" Prentiss asked, her voice a lot higher than usual due to the nervousness. "He's probably just gone to the bathroom or decided to take a walk around, you know him…"

"He can't walk, Emily!" Morgan nearly shouted. "Last time I saw him he was barely able to stay awake for about half an hour! And besides he just got a bullet removed from his leg, so the least probable thing now is him jumping out of his bed and running away!"

"Okay, you're right," Prentiss sighed as she worked on getting her shoes on with the obvious purpose of getting up and starting to search for Reid. Morgan didn't stop her; she was already allowed to get up and move her limbs. "So somebody has taken him. But who? And why doesn't anybody know about it?"

"That's what we're going to find out now," Morgan answered and motioned her to follow before storming out of the room.

They flew down the corridor, nearly knocking over a couple of nurses.

"Hotch!" Morgan shouted.

"Wait, guys, we have something," JJ greeted them with an anxious expression. She, Hotch and Rossi were standing by reception.

"What's that?" Prentiss asked.

"Shut up," JJ cut her off unusually rudely.

"Yes, sir," the girl in reception said, looking into Hotch's eyes, "Dr. Graham took him out in the garden, to breathe some fresh air, I suppose."

"Took him out? How?" Rossi asked impatiently.

"In a wheelchair," she answered, "he appeared to be sleeping."

Hotch and Rossi exchanged a look.

"Wait, you saw someone wheel an unconscious person right out of this gate and you didn't do anything?" Morgan demanded of the girl angrily.

"Sir, Dr. Graham is an honored doctor, it's not my job to supervise his actions. My job is to let him out if he shows me his card."

"He showed you his card?" Hotch repeated as if wanting to make sure.

"Yes, sir."

"What was his face like?"

"I'm sorry?"

"His expression, wasn't it looking suspicious or anything to you?"

The girl became uncertain. "I… I didn't really look at his face. I was busy."

Hotch exchanged a look with Rossi again, but this time he eyed the others too, one after the other. When he returned his gaze to the receptionist, his expression was more serious than ever and his voice was very quiet.

"We suspect that Dr. Reid was kidnapped and the man who took him was not Dr. Graham but somebody who wanted to _make _himself look like Dr. Graham. Call Trevors." His last words were addressed to JJ.

"Kidnapped?" the receptionist's eyes grew wide in disbelief. "What kind of a man kidnaps someone who's injured and unconscious?"

"The same man that had shot him in the leg," Morgan replied darkly. "Did the security guys look in the garden? Maybe he's not so far yet."

"When did they go out?" Rossi asked the woman.

"I don't know, about fifteen minutes ago," she answered.

"Fifteen minutes," Prentiss shook her head sadly. "They're not in the garden by now. He probably had a car… they could be anywhere."

* * *

"Dammit Reid, I leave you alone for such little time…" Morgan hissed between his teeth. He was still pacing around the others who gathered at one of the groups of waiting chairs.

"Okay what do we know?" Hotch asked after a couple minutes of silence.

"That we screwed up," JJ answered. Although her voice was calm, all of them could sense how shaken she really was. They knew that JJ was recalling another time when Reid was kidnapped right from under her nose. But this time the responsibility wasn't all hers.

"Who saw him last and when?"

"I think it was me," Rossi spoke up. "I visited him around eleven this morning. We didn't talk because he was asleep."

"We shouldn't have left him alone," Hotch said suddenly. This sentence, that was so full of regret, scared them. They expected Hotch to handle the problem, to find the solution, just as he always did, not to express his guilt.

"No, I mean, who could have seen this?" Morgan tried to help. "It's not so easy to abduct someone from a crowded hospital…"

"Yet he did it," JJ stated with the previous calm tone.

"Who is this man, anyway?" Rossi asked. "I know the only person that occurs is the masked guy who attacked you at Hanson's place…"

"That's it," Prentiss' face suddenly turned very serious. When she looked up at the others, her gaze was full of fear. "It must be him. Why didn't I listen? He knew…"

"Would you share it with us please?" Morgan fumed.

"It's all my fault. I should have known… I should have told you…"

JJ hurried to her and placed one arm around Prentiss' shoulders. "What, Emily?"

Prentiss finally managed to pull herself together. "It must be Hanson. Reid thought it was him who attacked us. He told me before, but I didn't listen. I was too busy getting us somewhere safe…"

"It's okay, Emily," JJ soothed her. "But why would Hanson come after Reid? Do you have any idea what he may want?"

"Reid had this… theory," Prentiss explained, "you know, with the perfume. We found a bottle in Hanson's meditation room too."

"What?" Morgan jumped with a 'why didn't you tell me this before' expression on his face.

"That must be the reason… Reid told me Hanson had seen him find the bottle. I didn't see it… but if Reid was right, Hanson probably wanted to eliminate the person who saw the proof against him. That's why he came after him…"

Rossi shook his head slowly. "It explains one thing but raises more questions. Why did he take Reid and not you, for example?"

"Because I can't be a witness against him. I've only seen a pink perfume bottle which is probably very common here. I didn't see Hanson's face when he found out that someone knows his secret."

"Okay, but if he really was the masked man, why didn't he just shoot you in the basement?" Morgan asked, the worry for his friend temporarily changing into the excitement of tracking down a criminal.

"He must have been panicking," Hotch said.

"That's what I think too," Prentiss nodded. "He didn't know what to do with us. He didn't want to kill us right away but he didn't want to let us go either.

"That means he hopefully doesn't plan to kill Reid," JJ interjected, "at least for the time being. But we have to find him soon."

"But how? We have no clue, not the slightest…"

"Come on," Hotch interrupted, "I know we can find something. We _must _find something…"

* * *

Reid slowly became aware of his surroundings. The first thing he felt was that he was in a moving car and that it was extremely cold.

The second thing was the pain.


	18. Chapter 17: Hitting the Road

**A.N.: Thanks for all the wonderful reviews, everyone! Especially to KASEY64, the-vampire-act, cyn23, ghostdolly and Sue1313 who reviewed the latest chapter even if it didn't have too much Reid in it...:D Well better luck this time;) Also thanks to all the others who didn't reviewed but added my story to their favorites and story alerts. It means a lot to me and you guys really make me happy!**

**Special thanks to my beta-reader REIDFANATIC.  
**

Chapter 17: Hitting the Road

His head hurt, his eyes hurt, his fingers hurt but most of all, his knee hurt terribly. It was probably supposed to lie straight, not to be bent like this. Reid opened his eyes; sure he couldn't straighten his leg since he was sitting in the passenger seat of a car.

He was _not _supposed to be here at all.

After blinking several times, he slowly and carefully opened his eyes and glanced sideways to his driver. The figure was far too familiar… and then he remembered.

In a blind wave of panic, he quickly reached for the handle to open the door and try to escape. His hands felt heavy and that was when he realized another strange thing; he was handcuffed. Handcuffed like a dangerous criminal. He pulled the handle more desperately, although it was difficult with his stiff and bandaged fingers, but the door refused to open.

"I wouldn't do that if I were you," a voice suddenly said. "We're traveling at over 90 miles per hour; I don't think it would do any good to you if you just jumped out of the car."

Reid took the advice and his hands fell back hopelessly into his lap. He closed his eyes in agony and asked: "What do you want from me, Hanson?"

Riley Hanson smiled coldly, not taking his eyes off the road. "Don't worry, if you are good I won't hurt you."

"Where are we going?"

"You don't need to know that right now."

"Please, could you turn up the heat at least?" Reid asked tiredly. "I'm very cold."

Hanson didn't answer just shrugged and turned it up. Soon, warm air was blown into Reid's face and he gratefully closed his eyes and let the warmth whirl around him, trying to overcome the cold that was coming from somewhere inside him.

"Why am I handcuffed?" He asked after a couple of silent minutes, still not bothering to open his eyes.

Hanson shrugged again, "Security measures."

"I'm not a danger to you," Reid pressed on, "Especially now."

"Yes, you are a great danger to me, Agent Reid," Hanson said coldly, "much greater than anything I've met in my life."

* * *

"Riley Hanson, age 35, lives at 67 Parker Street, Riverwood, Montana. No records, he's clear," Garcia's voice jingled from the speakerphone.

"What did he do before he founded his sect?" Hotch asked.

"Let me see… he was born and raised in Salt Lake City, Utah. At the age of 18 he left his parents' house and moved to Denver where he started law studies at the University of Denver. Interesting… it seems he didn't finish it. He left the university in 1996 and moved to Riverwood. Various jobs… none of them longer than one year. Looks pretty restless to me, well until he founded this cult about three years ago."

"Thank you, Garcia," Hotch said.

"Still no sign of Reid?" she asked and they all could sense as her voice changed in hope of hearing something reassuring. She kept asking this question every minute or two and it was starting to drive the others crazy.

"No," Prentiss said maybe a little too harshly; but no one could blame her for that.

"Okay, okay," Garcia's voice sounded disappointed. "Well tell me if anything…"

"Don't worry we will," Hotch cut her off and switched the phone off.

They stood in silence for a while, staring at one another or at the floor. At last Prentiss sighed and started the debate.

"Why did he feel the urge to found a cult at all? He didn't seem to have a strong connection to any religion."

"Something must have happened in his life, something important that changed him maybe," Rossi said. "Just because he went to the college of law, it doesn't mean he wasn't religious at all."

"Maybe he wasn't content with Christianity," Morgan added, "a lot of young people can easily be disappointed. They're expecting something and it doesn't come true. They lose their faith… or go and look for another religion."

"But Hanson seemed to find his peace after founding his own," JJ chimed in, "why did he go out and start killing people then?"

"Simple," Morgan explained, "those women were somehow against his religion. Their behavior, their family, their clothes…"

"Their perfume," Prentiss interjected softly.

"That's bullshit," Morgan shook his head. "I mean, I know what Reid thought, but… why the hell would you kill unfamiliar people because of their scent?"

"Maybe because I'm a lunatic," JJ guessed.

"Morgan's right, Hanson's personality just doesn't fit the profile," Hotch said. "Prentiss, what kind of a person did he seem to you?"

Prentiss' face turned unsure. "Not the kind that kills innocent women. He really gave me the impression of the man Trevors and Dawson have described, an anchorite who loves nature, may seem a bit odd but he's polite to strangers."

"And don't forget that three years have passed between the founding of the cult and the killings," Rossi added, "if the women somehow conflicted with his religion, the killings would have started much earlier. But for three years he lived in peace."

"He might have had another experience in his life that could… somehow have triggered the murders." Hotch went on, "But what?"

"If Reid was here, we could work more effectively," JJ suddenly stated. Everyone looked at her.

"Yeah," Morgan sighed, "seems our unsub knows who the key to him is…"

* * *

"So, why did you kill them?" Reid asked after a couple minutes of silent ride. He was now feeling a bit more comfortable, though his leg was still hurting, but at least the terrible cold was finally starting to fade away. He was actually growing sleepy.

Hanson didn't answer immediately. Looking at him from the corner of his eye, the profiler in Reid could easily tell that he was hesitating whether or not deny the crimes.

"I'm really surprised, Agent," he finally said, half smiling. "I would have thought you'd have managed to find that out by now. You're an elite team of the FBI, aren't you? The ones who catch the most complicated criminal minds, and yet you don't know the reason for my killings?"

"I know about the perfume," Reid admitted, "The Scent of Awakening. I know the murdered women were all using this. But that's not enough of a reason for me."

"You wanna know the reason?" Hanson's voice suddenly turned angry, making the young agent startle in his seat. But the anger disappeared as quickly as it came. He continued just as calm and soft as before. "They were evil. That's all you have to know for now."

"I don't really underst…" Reid started but Hanson cut him off.

"I'm sorry, Agent Reid," he said, suddenly sounding very sad, "I'm sorry that it happened this way. We were so close… so close to never meeting again. You screwed up, son. If you hadn't found that bottle…"

Reid gulped. He didn't really know what to say about that.

"You think that I make you obey me because I have a gun, but it's not the truth, at least not the whole truth. Truth is that it's you who forces me to do things I don't want to do. Like kidnapping a federal agent and running away, leaving my people behind who all have faith in me… do you think I wanted this? But I will do everything to prevent you from doing any harm to me, understand?"

Reid nodded unsurely.

"That's good, son. Now I tell you what happens. We stop at the next gas station, go in and buy some food. You're coming with me, don't touch anything and don't say a word. If you do, I'll be forced to shoot you and all the other people in the shop. Got it?"

"Yeah," Reid murmured. As much as he feared that Hanson would hurt anyone, he was still hoping that an action like that would probably give Hanson a chance to make a mistake, and he might be able to get away.

* * *

It was already getting dark outside though it wasn't even 6 pm yet. Since it was Thursday, the hotel's living room was pretty deserted; the guests had already gone back to their rooms to start preparing for the evening.

The five BAU members were still sitting around a coffee table, just like they had been for the past four hours since they'd come back to the hotel. From time to time one of them stood up and left for a short time to visit the bathroom or to get something to drink, then returned and continued sitting in solemn silence or joined the conversation if there was any. From time to time one of them spoke up, sharing a thought or two about the unsub or Reid's whereabouts. From time to time some of the others answered, but these conversations weren't lasting more than a couple of sentences; after them the team usually returned to being silent.

"Even if Hanson really is our man," Morgan said, "even if he really is the killer we're looking for and made a profile of, until now he was only known for one type of crime, murder. But he's not just a murderer anymore, he committed a new crime: he kidnapped someone." He swallowed, as if Reid's name was extremely hard to say out loud. "He hasn't done any kidnapping yet. It's a new thing to him. And because of that, he'll be more unpredictable than anytime before."

"Maybe he'll be easier to catch if he's inexperienced," Rossi stated.

"Or maybe not," Prentiss interrupted impatiently. "We can't just sit around and wait for him to give himself up…"

Morgan and JJ wanted to say something at the same time, but both of them fell silent as Hotch's cell phone rang.

"Hotchner."

The team waited in patient silence. They hoped unconsciously that it would be Trevors or someone from the police to give them some news about the investigation, but they didn't believe that any wonders would happen.

They soon realized their mistake as they heard Hotch's unusually surprised voice.

"_Reid?_"

**I'm starting to feel that I'm an addict for cliffhangers... or am I wrong?:D**

**Wait... if Reid calls it would mean he's okay... so it isn't really a cliffhanger... or is it? Tell me what you think, as always:)  
**


	19. Chapter 18: An Unexpected Call

**A.N.: Did you see the 5th season premiere? Reid was shot in the leg just like in my story! Wow, I'm not telepathic...:D Okay I know that it was written like this because of the injury of MGG but it's still funny isn't it?:D**

**Well here are the news about Reid. Happy reading! Thanks to rinswan, Calantha Iolanthe, ghostdolly, the-vampire-act, angeleyes46, cyn23, Sue1313, SignedSealedWritten and Paineverlasting for reviewing - we reached one hundred in the number of reviews which made me so happy and gave me a lot of self-confidence! Thank you guys all! Special thanks to REIDFANATIC for beta-reading.  
**

Chapter 18: An Unexpected Call

"_Reid?_" Hotch asked in the phone, disbelieving. The others stared at him in confusion. Could it be possible, was it really Reid calling?

"Where are you?" The unit chief asked. "Wait, wha… what do you mean? …Okay, okay, calm down… I will, right away. Hold on, we'll find you, understand? Reid? …_Reid?_"

The conversation obviously ended abruptly. Morgan rose from his seat, not taking his eyes off his superior.

"What happened?"

"I don't know," Hotch answered, the anxiety evident in his voice, still clinging to his phone as if his life was depending on it. "There was a loud thump and then the line went dead."

"Where is he?" Prentiss asked impatiently.

"He said he has no idea," Hotch shook his head sadly. "Someone call Garcia. We can track him down."

"How?" Morgan burst out. "The call is already ended…"

"But it wasn't a hidden number," Hotch cut him off. "I got it. That'll make things easier."

* * *

**(Half an hour earlier)**

"How is your leg?"

Reid chuckled. "You shot me and now you're asking me how my leg is?"

"I shot you because you attacked me," Hanson smiled, "it wasn't on purpose. So how is it?"

"Hurts." Reid answered reluctantly.

"I'm sorry."

"For what?"

"For your pain."

"Anything else?"

Hanson fell silent for a couple of seconds as if considering the question. "No," he answered finally, "I don't have anything else to be sorry for."

A gas station appeared in the distance and Hanson started to slow down.

"Can I ask you something?" Reid asked.

"I'm listening."

"How exactly do you think I'll walk into that shop in this hospital robe, handcuffed and barefoot, without drawing everyone's attention to myself?"

They reached the station. Hanson didn't answer just parked the car and stopped the engine. Then he reached to the back seat of the car, rummaged through a bag and pulled out a pair of slippers.

"I'll lend you these," he said as he dropped the slippers over Reid's legs. "But only while you're walking outdoors. They're my favorites. Oh, and don't worry about the handcuffs and the robe. Just do as I say and there won't be any problem."

Reid nodded and put the slippers on. A little later he realized that getting out of the car was actually a lot harder than it seemed. The door handle let itself open this time but when he tried to lift his injured leg he was greeted with searing pain. Hanson didn't look like he was going to accept this excuse so Reid clenched his teeth and pulled his leg out with his hands. It felt better now that he could straighten it, though it was still far from perfect. Hanson helped him stand up, well if you could call it help as he pulled Reid up by the chain of the handcuffs. Then he grabbed him with a firm grip on the upper arm and started towards the entrance of the shop.

The pain, increasing with every step, reminded Reid of the night when Prentiss kept dragging him towards the road in the falling snow. The cold was just strengthening this feeling; although it wasn't snowing now but it was cold and he was freezing since Hanson didn't bother to lend him a coat as well.

The shop was quiet and pretty deserted; in fact there were only two people apart from the salesclerk. Hanson escorted the limping Reid right to him, acting like having a handcuffed man in hospital robe as a partner was the most common thing in the world. Reid kept his gaze down on the floor, feeling the adrenalin rush through him as he felt the eyes of all three men on him. His heartbeat quickened and cold sweat broke out on his forehead.

"Can I help you?" The salesclerk asked, still glaring at Reid.

"Yes, I'll have two bottles of water and two chicken sandwiches. Are you okay with chicken?" Hanson asked, turning to Reid.

The young agent nodded, not daring to lift his gaze off the ground. The salesclerk put the sandwiches and the bottles on the counter, still sending curious glances towards the captive.

"May I ask…" he began but Hanson cut him off.

"Don't worry, he's not dangerous," he smiled, "just ran away from a mental home in Pierre. I'm taking him back now, he needs his medicine. Don't worry about the handcuffs, he's only a danger to himself. Tried to finish himself off a couple of times, but he wouldn't hurt anyone else."

Reid could barely hide a grin despite the seriousness of the situation, but Hanson's tale sounded at least somewhat believable. The salesclerk seemed to calm down a bit.

"Anything else, sir?"

"Would you like anything else?" Hanson turned to Reid who silently shook his head.

"That's all."

Just then, when it seemed that everything would be fine and Hanson wouldn't be forced to do things neither of them wanted, another voice spoke.

"What happened to your leg, boy?"

The voice belonged to one of the customers who was watching the scene from the background but now he came closer and addressed Reid. The young agent looked at him, scared and unsure what to say.

"He was born like this," Hanson hurried to answer in a calm tone. "The nurses told me."

"Shut up, I didn't ask you," the guy cut him off then turned back to Reid. "What happened to your leg? Did he hurt you?"

Reid shook his head, pressing his lips together. He wanted so desperately to shout, to ask for help but he knew too well that his captor was only a movement away from killing everyone here.

Hanson on the other hand was growing angry. "What kind of person do you think I am? He's ill and I'm taking him back to where he's supposed to be…"

"I don't believe you," the other man said threateningly. "I saw him come in and I can tell you it's not like he had been living with a bad leg in all his life. It's a recent injury. Hell, this poor kid is in pain, can't you see that? Now step away from him, I'm calling 911."

But he didn't have time to do as he said since Hanson pulled out his gun and pointed it at him in less than a second.

"No you won't."

Reid felt his heart jump to his throat. Now how would they get out of this without anyone getting hurt?

It all happened very fast. The customer jumped towards Hanson and knocked the gun out of his hand swiftly. Reid was pushed aside and he watched in horror as the two men fought. His first thought was to get the gun, but it was too far away, on the other side of the battle. Though the customer was a big guy, bigger than his opponent, it seemed that Hanson was getting the upper hand. That must have been the reason for the salesclerk to climb over the counter and join in to help. Reid looked around but the other customer was nowhere to be seen; he must have run out when the gun appeared.

But then he saw something else.

A phone, on a shelf on the other side of the counter.

He hurried as quickly as his injured leg would allow past the fighting men, got around the counter, grabbed the phone and sat down, unconsciously trying to hide from Hanson as much as possible. He hissed as pain shot through his leg during the procedure, but his mind was already focusing on the newfound aid. His first thought was to call 911 like the customer wanted, but then he realized he had absolutely no idea of where they were. So then he dialed another number that was equally clear in his memory.

"_Hotchner._"

The sound of his unit chief's toneless voice was like beautiful music to his ears. Relief rushed through him; he could barely speak.

"Hotch… it's me!"

"_Reid? Where are you?_"

"I have no idea… some gas station, but I don't know where…"

"_Wait, wha… what do you mean?_"

"Hanson took me and… I think he stunned me and when I woke up we were in a car and… then we stopped here and he attacked someone…"

"_Okay, okay, calm down…_"

"Hotch, please call Garcia, she will find me, just call her now, okay?"

"_I will, right away. Hold on, we'll find you, understand?_"

Reid only had a moment to realize that someone was standing above him before he received a violent blow to the face. He fell sideways, dropping the phone from which he could hear Hotch calling his name.

Another blow came and his head hit the side of the counter. Half blinded by the pain, he covered his face with his arms as much as he could and glanced up at his attacker. It was Hanson, of course. Reid wondered where the other two men were, or if they were even alive.

Hanson didn't beat him more. Instead, he grabbed the chains of the handcuffs and hauled him up just like before.

"You… bastard," he spat in the young agent's face. "Can't leave you alone for two minutes?"


	20. Chapter 19: Without a Trace

**A.N.: Next chapter here, hope you enjoy it. Thanks to Calantha Iolanthe, ghostdolly, the-vampire-act, Paineverlasting, cyn23, Sue1313, myers1978 and tearbos for reviewing, and to REIDFANATIC for beta-reading!  
**

Chapter 19: Without a Trace

"Okay guys, listen, I got the number," Garcia's voice came through the speakerphone. "It's the number of a gas station in South Dakota, on road 83, north of Gettysburg."

"South Dakota?" Morgan echoed in disbelief. "How the hell has he gotten so far? And where is he heading?"

"You got the information, now tell me what he said!" Garcia demanded.

"Nothing in particular," Prentiss answered her question. "He had no idea where he was. He must have come around recently, and considering how Hotch spoke to him he was quite scared."

"Oh, my poor sweetcheeks," Garcia sighed. "Are you going there now?"

"Yes, we're leaving in about two minutes. Hotch is just ordering lockdown in that area."

"I hope you catch them," the technical analyst whispered rather to herself than to the team.

* * *

Reid sat on the passenger seat, feeling miserable. His nose and mouth were bleeding, his head hurt and he was starting to feel extremely cold again. Hanson was driving dumbly, apparently not caring about his captive. When he drove out of the parking lot of the gas station, he had turned the opposite direction, so now they were heading just the way they had come from. Reid knew that it was because of him, because he had called Hotch and now the team could trace where they were. He knew that they were probably about to block the road further down, and now Hanson was trying to trick them by escaping in the other direction.

"Where are we going?" Reid asked for about the hundredth time, but Hanson continued to ignore him.

"You don't deserve to know that," he said darkly after a couple of minutes. "You don't deserve anything. This action was very stupid of you."

"It wasn't my fault," Reid argued, "I didn't do anything and you started fighting anyway."

"It _is _your fault," Hanson cut him off. "You'll have to act better next time. No one should notice that you're feeling bad, understand? This is what happens when you're not doing your best in cooperating with me."

"And how the hell am I supposed to pretend I'm all healthy now?" Reid asked, barely able to hide the anger at Hanson's stubbornness. "I'm supposed to have surgery in four days or so and I should be lying until then! I can hardly walk even with a limp, let alone without it!"

"Son, it seems you don't understand," Hanson said simply and softly as he suddenly turned onto a more deserted dirt road. "And that's a serious problem. Now let me make things clear."

He slowed down but he didn't stop. Reid sat silently, tired of everything but he noticed that his driver was watching the road very carefully and kept glancing almost nervously in the rear-view mirror as if he was afraid that they were being followed.

"Listen son, I won't lie to you, I'm not that kind of man. You don't need to try to get away from me because I don't plan to kill or hurt you, but I do plan to let you go soon. So you'd better not waste your energy on useless efforts, as you can see I'm the stronger one, and the more you try to escape, the more I'll punish you and the later you'll get free."

"You're gonna let me go?" Reid asked, not believing what he had heard.

"Yeah, I've got no major problem with you. You were just doing your job."

"You've killed seven people, why bother to abduct me just to let me go at the end?" Reid pointed out before he could stop himself. He knew that it was dangerous to give a serial killer the idea to kill again, but he was beyond caring anymore. He was hurting and tired and he wouldn't have minded if Hanson just finished him right there.

"Still you don't get it," Hanson shook his head, "I don't kill good people. I only kill the evil ones."

"And what is 'evil'?"

"What should I explain about it? People who take pleasure in hurting others or their feelings."

"And you just decided to start a crusade against them?"

"Apparently yes."

"And how do you know you're the right person to judge them?"

"Stupid question Agent Reid. God has chosen me."

Reid sighed. So he's just another religious freak, after all. _Just like Tobias Henkel._ He quickly pushed away the thought that hustled into his mind.

"Was it he who told you that those women were evil?" He asked.

Hanson's expression turned dark. "Don't bring them up anymore," he said.

"Why? You killed them and you didn't know them at all! You did it because God ordered you to?"

"SHUT UP!" Hanson yelled in fury, and Reid's heartbeat quickened as he saw his captor reach for his pocket. _That's it, I've gone too far and now he's going to shoot me in cold blood, _he thought, but a moment later he was proved wrong. Hanson only took out a handkerchief and threw it into Reid's lap. The young agent stared at it in surprise, realizing that this unsub had a lot more self-control than he'd thought.

"And wipe the blood off your face," Hanson added, "it won't improve your looks when we stop next time."

* * *

Hotch stood in the middle of the shop at the gas station, looking around desperately to find some sign of Reid, but there wasn't any. He was gone, again, and since he hadn't gotten any calls from the officers manning the roadblocks, Hanson's car hadn't been spotted yet. The chance that he had escaped the circle grew with every minute.

Prentiss stood up from behind the counter. "Sir, we've found blood." With a sigh, she added: "It's probably Reid's; we found it next to the phone he called us with. But it needs to be analyzed."

Hotch nodded silently. The two victims, the salesclerk and the helpful customer were already taken to the hospital, fortunately they only had minor injuries. Hotch wished this could be said of Reid too, but they still didn't have any news about him.

A minute later Rossi stepped to him with a short, black-haired, unfamiliar man.

"This is Carl Fernandez," Rossi introduced the stranger, "he was the one who called 911 after Hanson pulled out his gun."

"Thank you for your help. Please tell me what happened," Hotch said after he shook hands with Fernandez.

"Well I only came in for a drink," the black-haired man started, "so I was pretty close to the door. That was probably the reason that I could get out so fast, unnoticed, after that guy started threatening with that gun. I saw through the window that they started fighting, so I told the 911 operator that an ambulance would be needed too."

"Could you describe the gunman and his company?"

"Of course, sir, he was tall, brown-haired, well-built, in fact he wasn't really outstanding, but the other man, he was looking kinda odd. He wore handcuffs and a white robe like… you know, the ones you wear when you have to lie in a hospital. The other guy must have hurt him because when they came out, the younger one's face was bloody and he was limping badly. I hid behind my car so they couldn't see me… they were in a hurry anyways. I saw that the armed guy was actually pulling the other by the handcuffs."

"What car did they have?" Rossi asked.

"I'm sorry sir, I didn't see the license plate, I didn't have my glasses with me, but it was dark blue, and it appeared to be a Ford."

"Where the hell did he get a car when we were told that he only rides a bike, even for going into town and even in winter?" Morgan joined them, shaking his head, confused. Since Reid had told Hotch that it was really Hanson who abducted him, Morgan didn't have any more doubts regarding the unsub's identity.

"Just because he didn't use a car, it doesn't mean he didn't own one," Prentiss stated.

"That's right, and knowing whether it was stolen or it was his property wouldn't get us closer to finding him at the moment," Hotch confirmed.

Morgan's cell phone rang.

"Have you found him?" Garcia's anxious voice demanded after he picked it up.

"No, baby girl." Morgan wondered if he ever pronounced the word 'baby girl' with so much sadness. "We were too late. Hanson got away."

"So we have practically nothing more than before he called?"

"It's not entirely true. We know what car he has…"

"That is nothing," Garcia cut him off. "But I trust in Reid. He's strong and smart. He'll find a way to contact us again…"

_If he survives until then, _Morgan added, only to himself, then he said out loud, "Until then, we can't really do much more than wait…"

**Like Reid didn't always survive stories like that... haha:D**


	21. Chapter 20: Safe and Warm

**Sorry that I haven't updated for such a long time... school was getting hard on me, but I finally managed to continue. I'll probably have more time in the autumn holidays, so I'll try my best to update more often.**

**Thank you guys for the wonderful reviews: ghostdolly, the-vampire-act, Torilei, angeleyes46, myers1978, Calantha Iolanthe, mykidmom, Paineverlasting, tearbos and cyn23, and of course thanks to my great beta-reader REIDFANATIC!  
**

Chapter 20: Safe and Warm

"Where are we?" Reid asked as the car parked on the pavement of an empty street and the engine went silent. He didn't even realize that he had fallen asleep until he'd woken up a couple of minutes ago. It was now completely dark and they were in what looked like a small town.

"Redwood Falls, if I remember correctly," Hanson answered willingly.

"What are we doing here?"

"What do you think? We're staying here for the night. I'm kinda tired, how about you, son?"

Reid didn't answer. 'Tired' was not the best word to describe his condition right now. 'Sore' or 'cold' were a lot closer to it. He was only tired of Hanson calling him 'son'. Maybe it was the way he spoke to his followers, but it made Reid feel like he was twelve or thirteen, a boy who's old enough to accompany his father on some of his journeys, but who isn't old enough to know about serious things.

Hanson suddenly grabbed one of Reid's hands and pulled it towards himself. Reid gasped in fear but calmed down after he saw that his captor was only opening the handcuffs. He didn't unchain him fully however, just freed one hand and closed the now empty half of the handcuffs around the steering wheel.

"I'll be right back," Hanson smiled at Reid. "Wait here and don't do anything stupid. You know what the consequences will be."

He got out of the car and shut the door. Reid watched helplessly as he walked in a door under the big yellow letters that read 'Motel'. The young agent wondered what his captor's plan could be – last time people didn't really eat his tale about the runaway sicko.

Minutes passed and he started feeling quite uncomfortable: in fact his arm was getting tired as he had to hold it because the shortness of the handcuffs chain wouldn't let his hands be lowered on the seat. And he couldn't let it just hang: his wrist was bruised where the metal had excoriated his skin as a result of Hanson pulling him by the chains; red hot pain flooded his arm each time he moved it and his wrist made contact with the shackle.

Finally Hanson appeared after what felt like an eternity.

"We're lucky, son," he smiled as he opened the half of the cuffs that were bound to the steering wheel just to close it again around Reid's free wrist. "We can stay for the night. They have vacancy. Come on."

He helped Reid get out of the car and leaded him to the motel entrance, with the familiar, firm grip on the arm. Before they entered, Hanson stopped for a minute and whispered in the young agent's ear: "Remember son, just one bad move…"

Reid gulped, knowing the exact ending of the unfinished sentence. If he tried anything to get away, innocent people could die or, in the best case scenario, be seriously hurt.

They walked into the motel as if there was nothing strange about them. Reid felt the same fear as in the gas station, waiting for somebody to stop them, to shout at them, to ask why he was limping, but nothing happened, although he felt a dozen pair of eyes staring at him. _What on earth did Hanson tell these people?_

Once they were inside their room, Hanson locked the door from the inside and turned to Reid.

"We're safe now. I can't wait to have a good night's sleep, we deserve it, right?"

He was talking like the two of them were only on a holiday journey. Reid stood there, still shaking from the cold, not knowing what to do or rather what he was allowed to do.

"Okay, son, I presume you need to use the bathroom. I suggest you to take a nice hot bath; I'll take the handcuffs down for that. You got one hour, alright?"

"Thanks," Reid muttered barely audibly. Mentioning a hot bath only made him feel even more cold and tired, and he could barely stand upright now. He watched in a daze as Hanson unchained him, then stumbled into the bathroom and turned on the warm faucet. As the hot water was slowly filling the tub, he sat down on the edge and took a look around the room. It had no windows, only a small blow-hole, so there was obviously no way of escape. But at that moment, Reid didn't even want to escape, especially not from a bathtub full of warm water.

As he saw the toilet in the corner, he suddenly realized how much he needed to use it, so he quickly eased himself. It happened just the same way with the sink; as he saw it, he felt extremely thirsty, and he drank like he would never drink again.

The bath was ready; Reid took the hospital robe off in a hurry along with his underwear and lowered himself gratefully into the hot water. It felt so good that he nearly fainted at first. He had no idea whether the bandage on his left knee could be wet or not, he tried to keep it over the surface just to be sure.

He lay there with closed eyes for long, blissful minutes, not thinking about anything in particular. It felt wonderful. It felt as if his mind was torn away from his body and soared towards the sky. Soon it became hard to decide whether he was dreaming or awake, or even whether he was alive or dead. _If there is heaven, it must be like this. A nice, hot bath after a freezing winter day._

He didn't know how much time had passed. He must have drifted off to sleep because he awoke to someone banging on the bathroom door.

"Time's up, son," Hanson's voice was heard. "I want a shower myself too."

Reid opened his eyes and tried to prepare himself for having to leave the warm heaven. It seemed harder than he thought. None of his body parts wished to move, not even an inch.

"Are you there?" Hanson asked impatiently, "or have you flushed yourself down the toilet?"

"I'm coming, just a minute," Reid hurried to calm him, in a barely audible voice, but Hanson must have heard it because the banging and yelling stopped. The young agent even wondered why he hadn't just pushed in the door and come to drag him out personally.

While he was sleeping, Reid's knee had sunk into the water too, so the bandage was soaking wet, but he didn't mind it. His wound felt better; at least the pain wasn't as sharp now as it had been before.

He carefully stood up, grabbed a towel from the hanger standing beside the bathtub and wrapped himself in. After drying himself as much as possible, he put the hospital robe back on, not having any clean clothes.

Hanson was waiting for him on the other side of the door. He had the shackles in his hands, but miraculously he didn't make any attempt to put them back on Reid. Instead, he took a close look at the young agent's face.

"You alright?"

"Yeah, think so," Reid mumbled, standing there, again not knowing what he could do.

"Your face looks a bit red."

_Since when did he worry this much about my health? _Though he might be right, Reid thought. His insides, especially his head felt burning hot. It was strange, as if now they refused to let go of the heat they'd gained from the bath. _I must have a fever._

"You can go to bed, if you want," Hanson offered, "or is there anything else you'd like?"

_Well nothing, maybe just to go back to my team?_

"I'm hungry," Reid said quietly.

Hanson's brows jumped up to his hairline.

"I haven't eaten anything since morning," Reid explained.

"Oh, yeah, I remember." Hanson's voice turned teasing. "Maybe if we didn't have to leave the gas station in such a hurry because you screwed things up, I could have bought you a chicken sandwich."

Reid didn't answer. He was too tired to argue and knew he wouldn't win anyway.

"But don't worry, as I said I don't want to torture you. I'll order some food from the kitchen. You can go lay down."

He motioned towards the bed, and Reid obeyed gratefully. Hanson followed him though, and after the young agent made himself comfortable, he took his arm and cuffed him to the bed frame.

"Sorry son but I have to make sure you won't leave me."

"Do you by any chance have an anti febrile?" Reid asked suddenly.

"Are you sick?" Hanson was looking at him suspiciously.

"I think I have a fever."

"Sorry, I've run out of meds." Hanson spread his arms. "A long time ago. I haven't been ill since I was ten. I'll get some tomorrow, if you behave good."

"'Kay…" Reid mumbled, already half asleep. The bed was warm and comfortable, even with one of his arms immobilized. At last, he didn't have to worry about anything, well at the moment. At last, he could rest. Unconsciousness slowly wrapped him and he never saw Hanson get up from his bedside, dial a number on the phone and ask for a dinner.

**As always, tell me what you think!:)**


	22. Chapter 21: Thou Shalt Not Kill

**A.N.: Okay, this one goes out to all of you who had reviewed the previous chapter... I was so happy about those wonderful feedbacks you gave that I was filled with strength and I was able to write this chapter quite fast:)**

**Thank you SpyingBirdsagain, rinswan, Paineverlasting, fantasdancer, Calantha Iolanthe, myers1978, cyn23, Torilei, the-vampire-act and paper creations(sorry for spelling it wrong but for some reason this stupid editing panel always deleted it:O), and thanks to REIDFANATIC for beta-reading!  
**

Chapter 21: Thou Shalt Not Kill

Reid awoke to brilliant sunlight shining through the window into the hotel room. Blinking against the brightness, he lifted his head and took a look around. He saw Hanson sitting at the table, crouching over a newspaper while nibbling a cookie. There was more food in front of him on the table, Reid noticed, and he immediately felt his stomach growl.

"Can I have some of that too?" He risked a question.

Hanson looked up from the papers. "So, you woke up, about time."

"Why?"

"It's ten in the morning. You've slept for about eleven hours."

That was no doubt well-needed, Reid thought. He hadn't slept this much for quite a long time now. In fact, he hadn't been sleeping for more than one or two hours in a row since he was admitted to the hospital.

He tried to get up; that was when he realized that he was still cuffed to the bed frame. His body was stiff; he had probably slept the entire eleven hours in the same position. His whole left side, with his knee on the top was aching terribly and he moaned as he tried to move his limbs around.

"Just a minute," Hanson stood up from the table, walked to the bed and undid the handcuffs. This time, however, he didn't lock it back on his captive's other wrist.

Reid sat up, wincing and rubbing his wrist which was more bruised than yesterday, probably due to his attempts to move during sleep.

"Do you still have a fever?" Hanson asked.

"Dunno," the young agent mumbled. He felt slightly better than yesterday, to be honest; "Maybe a bit."

"I've brought some medicine."

Reid's mouth almost popped open in surprise. Was this really the same man that had shot him, kidnapped him from the hospital, hitting him twice in the face, not to mention the six women he had killed?

"Thank you," he stammered out.

Hanson returned with a glass of water and a bottle of Aspirin which wasn't even opened yet; it was clearly brought freshly from a pharmacy. Reid swallowed a pill and drank the water, then stood up and approached the table with the food.

"Can I eat something?" He asked.

"Yeah, of course," Hanson nodded and returned to the newspaper he'd been reading before. "I ordered it yesterday but you were already asleep by the time it arrived."

Reid sat down and gratefully reached for the food. There was some fried chicken, potatoes, salad and some fruit. He felt like he hadn't eaten for a year.

The minutes passed silently as he ate; Hanson didn't look up, and Reid was too busy feeding himself to start a conversation. Finally, after he finished, he couldn't keep his questions to himself anymore.

"Can I ask you something?"

"Hmm?" Hanson still didn't bother to stop reading.

"Why are you so kind to me now?" Reid asked, trying not to let his voice betray how nervous he was. "I mean, you've shot me in the leg, and… and abducted me from the hospital where I was treated, and…"

"How many times do I have to tell you I didn't mean to hurt you?" The older man finally looked up. "I have absolutely no problem with you. I only shot you because you jumped me. I took you from the hospital so that you couldn't help your team catch me and send me to jail. And I only hit you because I was angry and scared that I'd get caught after you phoned them."

Reid gulped. He had already heard this explanation once.

"But I'm not taking pleasure in hurting you or seeing you suffer. I know you don't deserve this."

"And what about the women?" he asked. "Did they deserve death really? Didn't you feel the same when you saw them die?"

"They didn't suffer," Hanson answered in a suddenly cold tone. "And I've told you once to leave them alone. Don't make me angry again."

"You don't want to talk about them," Reid established. "That means you're not proud of it. You're feeling guilty."

There was a loud thumping noise as Hanson brought his fist down hard on the table. Reid startled and fell silent but kept looking at him. After several minutes of tense silence, the young agent felt safe to ask again.

"When are you going to let me go?"

"As soon as I've found a solution to my situation."

"What solution?"

"There's a price on my head. Your team is looking for me. I don't want to be found. So here's my plan. I'll get a new personality then move away somewhere distant, and I'll put you out somewhere halfway."

"Why are you telling me this?" Reid asked. "Once I get back to my team, I will probably do everything to help them find you."

"I haven't said anything important," Hanson shrugged. "You won't know my new name or where I'll go and you'll never find me again."

He hesitated for a moment or two, and then added: "I will never hurt anyone again."

Reid looked at him closely. "What about God?"

Hanson hung his head and didn't answer. He suddenly gave the impression of a sad and broken man.

"I don't think I have trust in God anymore," he said finally.

Reid didn't know what to say. He was trained and prepared to handle an insane criminal. He had the ability to talk a killer who was about to pull the trigger of a gun into not doing it and giving himself up. But he had no idea what to do with a man who apparently just lost his faith in the greater good.

"When He first spoke to me," Hanson went on, "I thought that I was chosen. Maybe I really was. He came to me in my dreams almost every night, said that I had a task, a mission to help people and make this world better. Sounds ridiculous, right?" He looked up to Reid but the kid didn't show even the slightest sign of a smile. Just sat there, listening and looking at him with a very serious expression.

"I knew I could make the world better by executing the creatures of evil. There are so many of them but I was told that I'm not alone. There are others out there who've got the same mission. But something was wrong… I had a feeling that something was very wrong, right from the beginning. In the Ten Commandments there is one that says: _Thou shalt not kill. _And it was written by God. Now tell me how can I trust a God that contradicts himself?"

Reid kept sitting there and staring at this man, speechless. He had never experienced a feeling like that. In his whole life he felt like he'd always known what was good or bad, right or wrong, or even sometimes, both. He didn't always make the right decision, but he never woke one day to the feeling that something he'd thought to be good and had done repeatedly for a long time was actually bad, if not the worst.

"However, it's not really your business," Hanson said suddenly with a change of tone, "I don't even know why I had the need to share it with you."

"I'm a profiler," Reid felt the urge to explain it. "I need to know about your feelings to understand your actions…"

He couldn't finish the sentence as Hanson suddenly laughed out loud. "Sure, you're a profiler, so I assume you've had a profile of me for quite a while now, huh? You seemed surprised though when I told you these things."

Reid wanted to answer, to argue or anything, but once again he found himself without words.

"Okay, therapy is over, it's time to move," Hanson clasped his hands and stood up, looking completely like his old self now. "We should have checked out before ten, but you were sleeping so deeply, I didn't want to wake you. I paid the receptionist so that we could stay at least until twelve."

"That's very… kind of you," Reid admitted, his ability to speak finally returning.

"Are you ready to go?" Hanson asked as he folded his newspaper and put it in his bag.

"Yeah, just a minute," Reid answered, a bit confused. "I just need the bathroom."

"Sure."

After ten minutes Reid found himself in the same position as a day before, sitting in his hospital robe and handcuffed in the passenger seat of Hanson's car, speeding towards the unknown goal and thinking about the things he had just heard from his captor.

**Okay keep reviewing and you will get faster update!;) promise.**

**To those who are worried: according to my plans, Reid will escape over the next two chapters.:)  
**


	23. Chapter 22: The Reason

**A.N.: Surprise! I know you're just gonna love me for this.:D Okay, there's no school this week so I practically can't do anything with my time except for writing... is it a positive or a negative thing? Anyway, here's a brand new**** and ****quite long**** chapter, enjoy!**

**Thanks to myers1978, rinswan, Calantha Iolanthe, paper creations, Keira15, the-vampire-act, cyn23, SpyingBirdsagain and Paineverlasting for reviewing and to REIDFANATIC for beta-reading!  
**

Chapter 22: The Reason

_He suddenly found himself out in the wilderness, all alone, Hanson and his car having disappeared along with the handcuffs. He was standing in the middle of a blizzard, among dark trees and there wasn't any sign of light on the horizon. The weather was freezing._

_What am I doing here?_

_And then he heard the footsteps. They came running towards him and he too started running instinctively, fear growing in him with every step. He had no idea where he was heading, he only knew one thing: to get as far from the unknown chaser as possible. Branches tore at his face and sharp rocks bruised his feet as he tried to keep running. The whole situation reminded him painfully the night when he and Prentiss were fleeing from Hanson in the dark forest._

_The footsteps came closer by the minute. Reid's breathing grew erratic: the cold air was stinging his lungs and he knew he wouldn't last much longer…_

_Suddenly there was a bright light, appearing seemingly out of nowhere; it surrounded him and wrapped him, then there was a crash and he felt himself being tossed into the air…_

Reid's eyes popped open as he jerked with the shock of waking up. The bright headlights of a car coming from the opposite direction faded away as it passed them; and Hanson was just steering out of a sharp curve in the road which made Reid tilt against the door.

_Okay, now that must be the reason why I felt like I was flying…_

He was relieved that it had only been a dream. He would never ever wish to be in a night forest in winter again.

"You okay, son?" Hanson asked, not taking his eyes off the road.

"Yeah, why?"

"You were panting or what."

"Just a dream."

They'd spent the whole day traveling. Reid had completely lost his sense of time, especially since he kept drifting between sleep and wakefulness. Daylight faded away quickly and darkness had set in already in the early afternoon. Between the sleeping periods, the young agent noticed big snowflakes appearing on the windshield then quickly melting away. It was snowing again.

Finally after what seemed like an eternity, Hanson turned onto a narrow dirt road and slowed down. They were approaching their destination.

The car stopped in front of some kind of shack; at least it was what the strange building looked like in the dim light. It was a small house made of wood, looking more like a summer vacation house and it was clear that it hadn't been used by anybody for quite a long time.

"What's this?" Reid asked, unsure that they had really arrived at the right place.

"It's my hideout," Hanson answered plainly.

The shack was furnished very poorly, Reid learned as he stepped through the door after Hanson who led him again by the handcuff chains. It only consisted of two rooms: a living room and another which most probably was the bathroom. There was no kitchen if you didn't count the lonely fridge and a single sink next to it. And apart from an empty fireplace, there was no source of heating in the whole house.

"I know, it's quite modest," Hanson apologized as he shut the door. "I didn't know that I was going to need it at all. I just didn't sell it because I had the feeling it would come in handy some time, and I was right. It's a bit cold here?"

Reid already knew it; he sat down on the bed in the corner of the 'living room', freezing. He could feel his temperature rising again; he needed another pill of Aspirin.

"You don't look too good," Hanson established as he searched his bag for the medicine after Reid had asked for it. "You can sleep on the bed tonight; it's more comfortable than the couch, but only tonight."

Reid nodded and swallowed the pill. His fingers still felt a bit clumsy, but they were a lot better now than they were when he dropped the glass Garcia brought him in the hospital. In fact, the bandage on them started to bug him, so he tried to unbind them, only to be met with difficulties: his fingers didn't seem to be adept enough yet to do such smooth movements.

Hanson, who watched his battle silently from a chair after lighting the fireplace, suddenly stood up. "Let me help you," he said in a caring tone and started to unwrap the bandage. Reid let him do it, frustrated over his awkwardness, when Hanson suddenly stopped dead in his work.

"What?" The young agent looked up.

"Your wrists," Hanson answered. "They look very nasty."

Sure as he said, Reid suddenly realized how bad his wounds were. Both of his wrists were bruised under the cuffs, still bleeding a bit and there was also dried blood on his forearms. They hurt of course, but they were actually lost among Reid's various other sore body parts.

"Yeah, you know, the shackles have bruised them. You could really take them off for the night…" He started to explain but Hanson didn't let him finish.

"They look infected," he stated, "we have to clean them." With that he strode away and turned on the water at the sink in the other end of the room. Reid didn't care about him; he was still busy with untwisting the bandages. He only realized that he had been caught again by the chains of the shackle when Hanson was already dragging him through the room towards the sink.

"What the…?"

Before Reid could prevent it, Hanson pushed his hands under the water.

The young agent screamed out in pain. The water was boiling hot. He tried to pull away, to get his hands free but Hanson held the cuffs firmly; he even caught the back of Reid's neck so that he couldn't back away.

"No! Please, it hurts! Let me go!" Reid cried, the hot water burning not only the wounds but the skin on his hands as well.

"Stay still, stupid!" Hanson hissed, "We have to get it cleaned. I don't have any disinfectant but this will kill off the infection."

"Please stop!" Reid pleaded, watching his wrists in horror. "It hurts! Please!"

"Hurts now but it will be better, trust me. You won't lose your hands."

"You don't have to do this," the young agent kept begging. "Let's just talk it over. Please!"

Finally, Hanson let go of his hands. Reid stumbled backwards, his hands clutching each other, and collapsed on the bed. He felt tears of pain start building up in his eyes.

"Why did you do this?"

"I'm sorry," Hanson shook his head, "I had a feeling you weren't going to agree with this. But if we don't clean it, you would have faced a much uglier situation later."

Reid sat on the bed, panting and staring at him in disbelief. He was so kind to him until now… what could just have happened?

"It hurts," he said softly and miserably. The skin on his hands and wrists was bright red, with nasty bubbles in some place, and hot pain exploded each time the cuffs touched them.

"Okay, don't worry, we can do something about that," Hanson said as he pulled out a piece of cloth from his bag, watered it at the sink then came back to Reid. The kid instinctively tried to pull away but Hanson opened the handcuffs then bandaged both of his captive's wrists. The touch of the cloth felt cool and calming to Reid's burned skin, while the agent was still confused about this criminal's behavior; hurting him one moment, trying to heal him the next.

* * *

He awoke some time during the night, or was it already dawning? It was difficult to say in these winter mornings. At first he didn't know what had awakened him, until he heard the mumbling coming from the couch.

"Hanson?"

"Yeah?"

"Did you say something?"

Silence.

"I was wrong," Hanson said finally.

"About what?"

"I couldn't sleep because your pleas were echoing in my head, the begging not to hurt you. It was so much like _theirs_."

"The women," Reid whispered.

"Some of them had been begging for their lives just like you did. I can still hear them. Why would God make me bear such a charge? Then I realized."

Reid listened silently, waiting for what was about to unfold.

"God didn't want me to kill. I misunderstood his commands." He fell silent for a couple of minutes, then continued: "He told me that I had to do good things and fight the evil. It wasn't his fault. It was mine, for I was the one who didn't know the difference between the two. I thought, hell, I _believed_ that they were evil and I did a good thing by killing them. It was all because of…"

"The perfume," Reid finished the sentence, suddenly making the connection. He felt that someone had suddenly lit a light in his brain, in this whole strange case. "They all used _The Scent of Awakening_. The women I saw on the pictures in your room, they were all using it too."

"That's right," Hanson sighed.

"Ex-girlfriends?" Reid asked.

"One of them was my sister."

"I'm sorry."

"She was older than me so after our parents' death she should have taken care of me, but she wasn't very good at that," the older man continued, "she used to dress up in the evenings, do her makeup, spray herself all over with that horrible scent then go away without leaving me anything for dinner, even threatening me with a beating if I was not in bed when she came home. Yeah, as you can see we didn't have a very good relationship. In fact I hated her. But after I moved away from her I thought I could start my own new life. I had two other women in my life that I truly trusted. One of them had simply left me one morning, taking a great amount of my money with her; the other had been cheating on me with three different men at the same time. And they had this same scent too. All the bad things in my life were somehow connected to this perfume. That's why I started to think that it makes people who use it evil."

"To be honest it sounds quite surreal," Reid admitted.

"I know. But I always liked all kind of conspiracy theories. I even found some stuff on the Internet saying that certain chemicals can change human behavior and that the government produced and sold products that contained these chemicals for years! And of course the government is something you can't really fight, at least not alone. But I thought that my actions would have, at least, some small effect somewhere, that they would trigger a chain of events a lot bigger than I could imagine!"

Reid felt strange as he listened to Hanson. _You have to have a little bit of insanity eventually to start thinking like he does, _he thought. _At least he's talking in past tense._

"I know you think I'm crazy," Hanson whispered, as if he had just found out the young agent's thoughts. "But the old flame is not burning anymore. I just want to find myself peace and a place where I can live without being disturbed. Tell me you understand me."

"I do," Reid answered immediately but deep down he wasn't feeling so sure.

"That's good to know," Hanson stated. "Now let's try and get some sleep, I've got work to do tomorrow and I assume you need some rest too. Goodnight, son."

With that, he shifted himself on the couch and left Reid alone with his thoughts; the young agent didn't hear him speak more that night.

**Okay so it will be the next chapter when he gets away... are you interested? Tell me, as always:)**


	24. Chapter 23: Reid's Flight

**A.N.: Here's the next one, hope you'll like it. The promised escape. Thanks to Calantha Iolanthe, the-vampire-act, paper creations, rinswan, Keira15, Paineverlasting, cyn23 and myers1978 for reviewing and to REIDFANATIC for betaing and helping me avoid some errors!:)**

Chapter 23: Reid's Flight

The next day passed uneventfully. Hanson went away for a couple of hours, getting food and other necessities. Reid was left there, cuffed to the bed frame so he couldn't really do anything besides think or sleep.

But he just couldn't get to sleep, not after the things he had heard from Hanson. As a profiler, he and the team always gotten into other people's minds, especially killers' minds. They could see their reasons and motivations, but he'd never experienced to getting to know a killer's _soul. _He'd actually never looked at them from that point of view.

But something else was still bothering him, not letting him put his thoughts aside. It was Hanson's behavior.

He seemed to be a very rational man, at least to Reid. He always knew what he could or couldn't do, and he always made excellent work of covering his tracks. Yet sometimes he just seemed to act or think irrationally. First, there was this stuff with the perfume making women evil. Anyone with a healthy mind would just laugh at this idea… then the tale he wanted to feed the people at the gas station – he couldn't have thought that they would believe it! And now this, cleaning wounds with hot water… okay, well there weren't any other antiseptics around but the water had been much too hot, it had burned his skin and Reid couldn't decide if it had caused more damage than it helped.

It seemed as if he sometimes believed things that weren't real… or were different in reality, as if his mind couldn't properly tell facts from fiction… As if he had some kind of mental disease.

If he really was sick, it might save him in court. They could pronounce him insane which might make him not criminally responsible, and he wouldn't have to go to prison.

_Do I want him to be saved from prison?_ Reid wondered. _He isn't a bad man. He was kind to me and regretted his sins._

As he lay on the bed, being tossed between arguments and counter-arguments, he suddenly found himself feeling sympathy for his abductor. He definitely didn't want Hanson to go to jail now. He said he just wanted peace and a place where he could live alone, without hurting anyone anymore…

_I'm an FBI-agent. I have to catch criminals, not sympathize with them._

He only found some rest after Hanson arrived in the evening; they ate dinner then went to sleep, this time with Reid on the couch. He was cuffed again, to the leg of the couch so he had to lie on his stomach in order to be able to hang his arm down; but he didn't mind it. He felt exhausted from the tormenting thoughts and soon he drifted away to the world of dreams.

* * *

All of a sudden he awoke to falling, and right after that he felt his head hit something very hard. The pain nearly made him cry out but he managed to avoid that by clenching his teeth. As he became fully awake, he realized he must have fallen off the couch. He was lying on the floor next to it, with one of his arms still cuffed to its leg. His back started aching as he tried to get up, so he decided to stay down for a couple of minutes.

The floor was cold and highly uncomfortable, and his head was killing him. The pain throbbing in the back of his head simply wouldn't fade away. Sore back or not, he had to get back up there.

But as he turned to the left to try to sit up again, he saw something that caught his attention. The other half of the handcuffs that was locked around the couch leg was on the floor. _If only he could lift the couch a little, to pull the shackle from under it…_

He glanced towards the bed. Hanson was still sleeping, he hadn't been awakened by the sounds Reid had made; he could hear his deep, calm breaths.

This was his chance. For a brief moment Reid considered the thought of staying. Hanson had told him he would let him go once he found solutions to everything. But when would that be? Tomorrow? A week later? A year? He needed to get to back to the hospital, to get his knee fixed. If he missed that surgery his leg might remain screwed up for his entire life. And if Hanson really was mentally ill, who could tell when he'd start doing irrational things again?

Reid decided to take his chance. He moved closer to the couch and tried to lift it with his arms. He didn't meet with success: it was too heavy for his sore hands. After a couple minutes of unsuccessful attempts he realized that it wouldn't go like this; so he changed tactics. He moved even closer and pushed his legs under the couch, now trying to lift it with his knees. His wounded leg protested desperately against the pressure, sending waves of scorching pain up his spine but Reid kept pushing and finally the piece of furniture moved. He managed to lift it just enough to pull the handcuffs from underneath it; and then he was free.

He lowered the couch back to the floor and panted from the effort. The pain hit him with full force now, it felt worse than ever. Reid closed his eyes while absorbing it, and after it sank back to a somewhat more bearable level, he carefully got up. The world seemed to tilt around him but he managed to stay on his feet. He threw a nervous glance towards Hanson but the older man still appeared to be asleep. Reid felt his heart beating in his throat as he limped towards the door: it was closed but fortunately he quickly discovered the key lying on top of the fridge.

As he turned the key in the lock, it gave a soft click that he felt could have been heard miles away. Automatically he turned back to check on the sleeping man and blood immediately froze in his veins. Hanson's eyes were open and they were staring straight at him.

For a moment or two nothing happened. They just stared at each other like a couple of days ago when Reid found the perfume bottle in the meditation room. The young agent felt his breath stop; he could have even sworn that his heart stopped beating for that moment.

And then his instincts came back. He tore the door open, practically jumped out and launched himself into the forest, half-running and half-limping, not looking back but he could clearly hear that Hanson set off after him.

_If he catches me now, I'm dead._

His knee hurt more and more with every step as he forced himself to run faster. It was freezing cold; the wind was blowing hard and it was still snowing. Reid cursed himself for being so stupid as to end up in the forest at night again, in the middle of a blizzard. And this time it was even worse: he only had a thin hospital robe on and he was barefoot, feeling every rock and piece of ice bite at him and bruise his feet.

How much longer would he have to run to get out of this goddamn forest? How much longer could he keep running before collapsing or Hanson catching him?

Each time he slowed down to catch his breath he heard the footsteps come closer. So he sped up again, the cold air stinging his lungs and his side ached. Branches scratched his face and his feet became sorer with the growing number of bruises on them.

Suddenly he saw something among the trees. It was some kind of light, but it vanished as quickly as it had appeared. But then, as if it was playing a trick on him, it appeared again.

The light was moving!

As Reid advanced further, it turned out that it wasn't even one light. There were more of them. A road!

Reid felt huge relief, but right then he tripped as he stepped on something sharp and fell to the ground. Tears of pain sprang to his eyes but he didn't have time to examine himself; the footsteps were there, approaching and the young agent fought to get back on his feet. Dizziness rushed through him and his breathing grew erratic as he continued limping towards the road. Not much further…

Suddenly his soles felt asphalt and he stopped short. He'd arrived, but there were no cars. It couldn't be… he couldn't lose this close to victory…

And then he saw the light. It was so bright he didn't see anything. The light was coming towards him too quickly and Reid started having doubts. Was it going to stop at all? He held his hands in front of him as if trying to protect himself, but it seemed to be useless. The light grew even brighter, sounds of braking tires were heard, there was a crash and then he was tossed into the air and flew…

**That's it! A cliffie... You can call me evil but I noticed a slight decrease in the number of reviews, so I decided to speed things up a bit. Anyone who wants a FAST update please review:):)**


	25. Chapter 24: Welcome to Madison

**A.N.: I apologize for updating this relatively late. My computer stopped working and I had to look for an unoccupied one every time I wanted to write. And my brothers don't like very much when I'm sitting in front of theirs for hours... but well it's a challenge:)**

**Thanks to paper creations, 1111littlem, SpyingBirdsagain, Keira15, rinswan, myers1978, cyn23, the-vampire-act, Calantha Iolanthe and ColoradoKiki2007 for reviewing and to REIDFANATIC for beta-reading!**

Chapter 24: Welcome to Madison

It was a dark and ugly winter evening as Sally Finnegan drove home after a long day. She'd spent almost her entire day at a business conference, and although they'd served quite a hearty meal, she was tired and she wanted to get home to her family as soon as possible.

Night had fallen early, one of the things she hated most about winter. It made her feel that days were passing quickly, too quickly for her to have time for her beloved ones. She had two children, a twelve-year-old boy and a seven-year-old girl and a handsome husband. She loved them more than anything in her life.

About half an hour ago it had started snowing so she'd taken her pace back a bit. She was a very careful person and knew that one could easily be involved in an accident when driving too fast on a slippery road.

But she just _couldn't _resist it. She had promised to call her husband after the conference was over but she'd wanted to surprise them when she arrived. After a long debate with herself, she reached for her cell phone and pulled it out of her bag.

"Hi, Tom... Yeah, it's me. It's over; I'm on my way home. I know honey, I'm sorry. I'll be there in about half an hour… Okay, okay, bye!"

Relieved, she put the phone back into her bag on the passenger seat. When she turned her gaze back to the road, she felt her blood run cold. There was _someone _standing on the road. She pushed the brake with full force, the car slowed down, the tires screeching, but not fast enough. The person in white clothes in front of her raised his hands, as if trying to protect himself, and a half second before the impact Sally noticed some strange thing hanging from one of his wrists. _Was that a shackle?_

Fortunately, thanks to the lowered speed she hadn't hit him too roughly, only seemed to knock him over. Heart beating wildly in her chest, she got out of the car and hurried to the front. There she saw him lying just a couple of yards away. He was obviously not unconscious, only stunned a bit, as he was moving his head and legs. He was also shaking from the cold. As Sally approached him in fear that he might be seriously injured, she had to admit that this kid was the strangest person she'd ever seen. His longish brown hair was messy, he wore a white robe which was unmistakably hospital issue. There were handcuffs on his left wrist and both of his hands were bandaged. His face seemed young, even despite the slight bristle. Sally wouldn't have estimated his age more than twenty-five.

* * *

When Reid opened his eyes, the brightness was still there. For a brief moment the inane thought that he'd gone to heaven crossed his mind but a little after that he realized it wasn't very probable, unless there were rough and cold asphalt roads in heaven too.

His whole body felt stiff but as he turned his head to the side to spy the source of the white light, pain exploded in it and he had to close his eyes against the brightness. He'd managed to hit his head right on the spot where he'd hit it before while falling off the couch, and it was killing him now. Groaning, he tried to turn to his side in order to get up or at least sit, but just then he heard a female voice.

"Hey, don't move, don't move your neck," she said in a very anxious tone, and Reid felt soft hands touching his neck and holding it in place. As he opened his eyes, a woman's face appeared in his blurry vision. She had the same anxiety on her face that her voice betrayed. Glancing sideways, Reid discovered that he was lying in front of a standing car with its headlights on. Slowly he started to understand what had happened.

"Can you talk to me?" The woman asked. "Please, say something!"

"'tsokay," Reid managed to mumble and he tried to move again. His knee hurt, but other than that, he couldn't feel any new pain yet.

"Okay, now listen to me," she continued, "I'm going to call an ambulance. I'll just get my phone from the car. You stay here and don't move, okay?"

"No," Reid groaned, then coughed, "please." His hand grabbed the woman's. "Don't go away."

"I won't leave you here, sweetie, I just have to grab my cell, it's in there…"

"Take me to a hospital, please!"

"You're gonna get to a hospital, I promise," the woman almost begged. "I'll just call the ambulance. You need medical attention."

Reid was struggling. He had to talk this woman into letting him get into her car. "You don't understand," he said, "someone's chasing me, a lunatic. He wants to kill me. It takes minutes for the ambulance to arrive. I don't have that much time…"

Sally was still unsure. "You could be hurt. What if you have a spinal injury? You shouldn't move or you may cause more damage!"

"I'm not hurt that much," Reid hurried to calm her. "I think I can get up. I'm freezing here. Could you please help me?"

Sally couldn't say no to him. The young agent slowly pushed himself up into a sitting position, wincing from the pain that exploded in his ribs. He wondered if the impact had added some broken bones to his other injuries. With Sally's help he was soon on his feet, realizing that he was barely able to stand. His knee hurt more than ever and his bleeding feet felt like they were on fire.

"Careful," Sally said as she helped him sit in the passenger seat.

"Can I borrow your phone?" Reid asked as soon as he was placed somewhat comfortably on the seat. "I have to make an important call."

"Of course."

Reid dialed the same number as last time. The number he'd never forget; even if he forgot everything else, this number would be burned in his mind forever.

"_Hotchner."_

"Hotch, it's me again," he said tiredly but couldn't suppress a smile.

"_Reid, are you alright?"_

"Yeah, I'm fine, I'm safe. I'm on my way to the hospital."

"_Where?"_

"Wait a minute," Reid turned to the woman, "um, I'm sorry but could you tell me where we are?"

"On road 38, south of Madison. We're heading there now."

"Okay, thanks, so it's Madison, I'll be there soon," Reid said in the phone.

"_We're on our way."_

"Hotch, wait, you can get Hanson. He has a place in the forest, um, west of the road I'm on. He had been chasing me but now he'll probably go back to gather his belongings. You have to hurry."

"_I"ll call Garcia."_

"Thanks Hotch. See you soon."

Once finished with all duties, Reid closed his eyes and leaned his head back. For the first time in days he felt really safe.

"You okay?" Sally asked as she threw a glance at him.

"Yeah," he murmured. The truth was that he felt extremely dizzy and if he wasn't sitting, he would have collapsed. Various parts of his body ached with more or less intensity, but it didn't matter now. Help was on the way or rather, he was on his way to help.

"Don't go to sleep," Sally's voice broke the silence again. "Your head is injured. I bet that's a long story you have. How about telling me? What are those handcuffs supposed to mean, for example?"

Reid grinned. "I know, I must look scary, but don't worry, I haven't escaped from a prison or anything."

"I hope so, because you really are an interesting phenomenon," Sally smiled too. "You were talking about a lunatic but at first I thought you were delirious, or even that the lunatic was actually you."

"No, um, well I'm actually a federal agent," he explained. "I work for the FBI."

"Really?" There was a hint of doubt in her voice; as if she wasn't really sure that the trauma had left the kid's sanity unharmed.

"Yeah, I know I probably don't look very much like that," Reid continued, smiling. "We were working on a case, and um, I was kidnapped. The guy who took me didn't give me any other clothes, and he used these handcuffs to prevent me from escaping."

"You can't be serious," Sally smiled. "How did you manage to get away then?"

"I..." Reid started but he didn't finish the sentence as a wave of dizziness swept over him.

"You...?" She asked, waiting, but she didn't get an answer. "What's wrong?"

Reid closed his eyes against the dizziness that he tried to fight down unsuccessfully. For a moment he thought that he would just pass out. His breathing got faster and cold sweat broke out on his forehead. When he opened his eyes again, everything was blurry and he couldn't seem to focus on anything. "I..." He tried to continue but he just couldn't remember what he'd been about to say, no matter how hard he tried.

"Are you alright?" Distantly he heard Sally's voice.

"I don't... feel so good," he managed to say with ragged breathing.

"Hold on," she told him, "it's not much longer. Keep talking to me"

"Am I about to go into shock?" Reid asked, dazed, his voice barely above a whisper.

"How on earth would I know?" Sally broke out. "We should have waited for the ambulance."

"No," Reid breathed, "he would have found me. He would have killed me. Don' wanna go back there."

Sally could tell from his gibberish talk that he'd started losing it. She stepped on the gas pedal with a bit more force; although she was a very careful person she knew that the kid needed help and fast.

"Okay, calm down, you're not going anywhere and no one's going to kill you. Do you hear me? Say if you do."

"Mm," was Reid's only answer.

_Dammit, _Sally thought. It really wasn't too far now. Five minutes, maybe ten. _Hold on._

Buildings and street lights started appearing just as the car passed the big white sign that read _Welcome to Madison._

**Well all I can say there really isn't too much left... keep reading & reviewing!:)**


	26. Chapter 25: Deja vu

**A.N. Hi everyone! This seems to be the final chapter of this story. I hope you like the ending, tell me either you do or don't. Happy reading!**

**Thanks to Lynn-at-home, msgrl, the-vampire-act, Calanthe Iolanthe, Paineverlasting, paper creations, myers1978, Keira15 and cyn23 for reviewing and to my kind and patient REIDFANATIC for betaing!!**

Chapter 25 Deja vu

When the team arrived at Madison Memorial the next morning, Reid was already sleeping, exhausted from the events of the past day.

The receptionist looked at the BAU members with an doubtful expression on her face, telling them that nobody named Spencer Reid had been admitted recently; but when they started giving descriptions of him and saying that he must have been brought here some time in the middle of the night, the woman's face suddenly lit up and she told them the room number.

JJ and Morgan were the first ones to reach his room; they practically flew through the corridors, ahead of a dignified Hotchner, a tired Prentiss and a panting Rossi and Garcia.

A doctor was moving around Reid's bed when the two winners peeked in. There they saw Reid lying in the bed with a couple of IV bags hanging next to him; he was apparently sleeping peacefully but they could clearly see that he looked awfully battered.

"Excuse me, can we come in?"

The doctor turned around at Morgan's voice with a surprised expression on his face. "Are you his family?" He asked.

"Um, no, we're his co-workers, but we're... well we're like a family, yes," JJ tried to explain.

"Could you tell me his name then?" The doctor asked then continued at the confused expression of the agents: "When he was brought in, he wasn't really coherent. He was barely conscious and quite disorientated; we couldn't make anything out of his words."

He pointed at a small name card at the end of Reid's bed that read _John Doe._

"Um, it's SSA Dr. Spencer Reid," JJ answered the question, still shocked a bit.

Now the doctor was the one that looked confused.

"We're from the FBI."

The doctor looked at the sleeping Reid, looking as if he could hardly believe that the kid was really who they said he was. "Yes, I remember now," he said finally, "the woman who had brought him in said that he said something like that. To be honest I didn't really believe it; thought he was only delirious."

"Wait, what woman?"

"She'd driven him here. According to her, he jumped in front of her car and she accidentally hit him, but he didn't have life-threatening injuries so she picked him up and drove here. She went home for the night but said that she'd be back tomorrow morning."

"Okay, sure, now please could you tell me how he is? Is he gonna be all right?" Morgan was growing impatient. Behind him, the other BAU members finally appeared.

"Okay, well," the doctor started after he made sure everyone had arrived. "First, he's going to be okay. He has multiple injuries, but none of them are critical: a gunshot wound in his left leg that was already treated by someone when he came here; two cracked ribs, burns on his hands, cut up wrists and feet, actually we removed an inch long piece of branch from his right foot. He also suffered a mild concussion and he was severely dehydrated by the time he was brought in, but we have hooked him up on fluids and some blood. He's running a fever currently, due to the fact that some of his wounds were infected, but I can assure you that in just a few days and he'll be fine."

The whole team gave out a sigh of relief in unison.

"I'm Doctor Stephen Bradley by the way," the doc said. "Do you know what the hell happened to him?"

"He was kidnapped by a criminal we were after," Hotch said in his usual dry tone.

"His leg needs a second surgery," Prentiss chimed in. "The doctors said it in the other hospital."

"Yeah, I was afraid of that too," Dr. Bradley admitted. "If you could give me the number of the other hospital, I will consult with them. He'll probably need physical therapy but we expect him to regain full use of his leg."

"Sure, I'll give it," Hotch nodded and took out his cell.

"Thanks," Dr. Bradley said as he got the number. "I'll go then. You can stay here with him, I don't know when he'll wake up, but he needs a lot of rest so don't tire him too much."

With that, he strode out of the room. The team gathered silently around the thin figure lying motionlessly in the bed; only the rising and falling of his chest indicated that he was alive. Though she knew that he probably didn't hear him, JJ gently took one of Reid's bandaged hands and spoke:

"Hey Spence, don't worry, everything will be okay now."

She smiled, suddenly feeling very stupid but none of the others said anything. And then suddenly Reid's mouth curved into a smile too.

"About damn time you got here," he said in a soft and raspy voice, without even bothering to open his eyes. "What the hell took you so long?"

"Hey, kid," Morgan grinned and couldn't resist to mussing his friend's hair, though very gently. When Reid made an indignant sound, the others couldn't help but break out laughing.

The young agent opened his eyes and looked around at his team sleepily. Everyone was there; that gave him relief and comfort.

"Hey sweetcheeks, how are you feeling?" Garcia asked, smiling but in an anxious tone.

"Hurt, if you want me to be honest," Reid admitted, "but I heard the doctor say I'll be okay. Did you find Hanson?"

"Yes, we've got him, thanks to you," Hotch said. "We called the police station in Madison; they flew over the land with helicopters and spotted his car as he tried to escape. They managed to catch him; he didn't put up a fight."

Silence fell on the group after his words; Reid stared in front of himself, wondering if he'd made the right decision.

"He wanted to let me go," he said finally. "He said he'd get a new identity, let me go and never commit a crime ever again."

"He_ hurt _you," Prentiss pointed to Reid's knee.

"Yeah, but when I felt like crap, he was kind to me and wanted to help, bought me medicine."

JJ squeezed his hand. "Spence, you did the right thing. He's a murderer. He has to pay for what he's done."

"I know," the young agent whispered, looking away. Then he lifted his gaze and looked up on them once again. "Promise me you'll never leave me alone again in a hospital," he added, smiling.

"Honey I promise that I'll never leave this room until you do too and I'll be around you so much that at the end you'll be begging me to leave you alone," Garcia grinned.

"Fine, I'll take you up on that offer," Reid grinned back.

"You have to tell us everything, you know," Morgan reminded him. "I want to know all the details."

"Who was that woman?" JJ joined the questioning. "Did she really run you over with her car?"

"Yeah, but it wasn't her fault," Reid explained. "I was running and suddenly I found myself on the road. She probably didn't see me in time. When do we go home?" He changed subject.

Hotch shrugged. "I assume it'll be a while yet. We have to wait for your other surgery and then a couple of days until the doctors deem it safe for you to leave and you're cleared to fly."

Reid blushed. "I'm sorry for holding you up."

"You kidding?" Morgan laughed. "It'll be like an extra holiday!"

The others smiled. Reid smiled too. He was terribly exhausted but he didn't want to go to sleep. It gave him a lot of comfort to see his team members around him. It gave him the feeling that he was really protected this time. And he would never have exchanged that feeling for anything in the world. Although he was thousands of miles from his apartment or the bullpen, he was definitely _home._

_

* * *

_

Three weeks later

"Hey, I can see you, I can see you, you're dead!"

Reid walked or rather limped into the bullpen when he heard Prentiss' excited voice. He smiled to himself because he knew exactly what would make Prentiss sound so excited and childish. Then he saw them sitting in front of the laptop, eyes locked on the screen, concentrating hard onto something he couldn't see yet.

"No way!" Morgan nearly shouted.

"Yes, look... wait, there, there... and BOOM! I said you're DEAD!"

She laughed cheerfully while Morgan shook his head in disappointment. "Lady, that's not nice. I show you this game and teach you how to play it, and what do I get in return? Beating me so rudely, not fair. Hey man," he added as he saw Reid limp in. "Did you have fun with the therapy yesterday?"

Reid sighed. "I'm going through hell while you're playing here all along like two five-year-olds. It's catastrophic."

He sat down in his chair, wincing a bit. As soon as he could stand up and walk, he refused to use any kind of walking aids, saying that they'd only make him look ridiculous. It made things a bit harder for him and he got tired faster, but he was satisfied with himself and that was all he needed.

JJ peeked out of the conference room. "Guys, you better head up here and see this."

"New case, great," Morgan moaned. "As if me getting beat up by a girl wasn't enough. This is definitely not my lucky day."

Reid and Prentiss grinned at each other as they stood up to follow their colleague. Hotch and Rossi were already in the room, burying themselves in some important sounding conversation. Dead bodies were visible on the screen. Reid felt his glee fade away as he looked at them, however it wasn't sadness that changed it but a determination, a will to solve this newest case just like they had solved the ones in the past. And he felt comfortable that he could continue his job, and that it didn't need to end soon.

JJ finished her monologue about the victims, and a vivid discussion began as they started creating the profile. Everything was back to normal.

**THE END**

**Maybe not fully. I'm secretly planning to post an extra chapter/epilogue/alternate ending. MAYBE.**


	27. Epilogue

**A.N.: Hi everyone, as I promised I've written a little epilogue, but this epilogue is to an alternate ending where Reid decided to let Hanson escape. You may like it or not, but this was lingering in my mind for a long time now. I just had to write it down.**

**Thanks to all the people who had reviewed the last chapter; paper creations, Lynn-at-home, the-vampire-act, SeeMeInTheShadows, Calantha Iolanthe, Paineverlasting and cyn23; and of course to good old REIDFANATIC for betaing!!  
**

Epilogue

//_What if Reid had never mentioned Hanson when he talked to Hotch in Sally Finnegan's car. The team would never found him, only his car, two days later and two states away._

_Still three weeks later since we left Reid and the team in the hospital..._//

Reid sat down with his fried chicken and potatoes at one of the tables in a quite modest diner next to the highway. He stretched out his wounded leg comfortably and started eating his meal, enjoying the weak, early March sun warming his face through the window. It was a beautiful Saturday afternoon. Reid had gotten a call from Hanson three days earlier, and this was the only reason he'd gotten up and drove miles away from Quantico instead of staying in his bed to sleep off the fatigue of the week. He wanted to meet him. He felt he_ had to _see what had become of the man that killed six times, kidnapped him and held him hostage for three days.

Suddenly a man sat down in the opposite chair. Reid looked up, and though he knew that it could only be him, it took several moments for him to make sure it was really Hanson sitting in front of him. The man had grown a mustache and a beard, and his hair was cut shorter. He even wore a baseball cap and sunglasses; his disguise was so effective that Reid could barely recognize him.

"Hello, Agent Reid," he greeted him. "Good appetite."

"Thank you," Reid nodded emotionlessly, noting that his abductor had stopped calling him 'son'.

Hanson didn't continue. They sat in silence for a couple of minutes until Reid had finished his lunch.

"So..." the young agent started.

"Thank you for not turning me in to the FBI," Hanson cut in. "Though I don't really know why you did it. But you have helped me to start my new life."

"Where do you live now?" Reid asked.

"In Canada. Just beyond the borders. I found myself a nice lonely house among the trees. No one disturbs me there, and I disturb no one."

Reid nodded. "Right. Not many criminals get a second chance. You better not waste yours."

"Never." Hanson hurried to claim, then added: "How is your leg?"

"It's healing. I'm currently doing a physical therapy which is a real agony but I'll be fine."

"I'm sorry for putting you through this," Hanson said, looking down somewhere in his lap. "I know I already said that but I just can't say it enough time."

"It's okay," Reid shrugged. "You're forgiven. Forgiven for what you've done to me. But with the women, I can't give you forgiveness. How do you feel about that?"

"I will regret my sins till the end of my life," the man answered silently. "I light six candles every evening and watch them burn down fully."

Reid listened silently. He couldn't decide whether Hanson was telling the truth, but deep down, he had a feeling that he was.

"Can I ask you something, Agent Reid?"

The young agent nodded.

"Why didn't you turn me in? You had the chance. Even now you could have caught me, and I, hell I would have deserved it."

Reid shrugged. "I think I just decided to give you a second chance. You brought me food and medicine when I was hurt and hungry. Thought that there's still a lot good in you, and then you made that promise..."

"Which I will keep until the last day of my life, even if it has to be tomorrow."

Reid nodded again. "I'm glad you haven't disappointed me... yet."

Another minute passed in silence. Both men were staring quietly on the table in front of them. Then Reid spoke again.

"Hanson… why did you call me at all?"

A weak smile appeared on the man's face. "I think you already know the answer. I wanted to thank you."

"For what?"

"For helping me realize how wrong I was. For helping me realize that I need to start a new life. That I need to look deeply into myself."

Reid chuckled. "I didn't really do anything."

"You asked me questions that I should have asked myself a long time ago. That was enough."

"I guess both of us have something to be grateful for, then," Reid said softly.

Hanson didn't answer for long minutes. At last he put his baseball cap back on and stood up.

"Well thanks again, Agent Reid. You won't hear from me again, I promise. See you in another life."

Reid nodded and watched as the tall figure exited the diner. He looked down in front of himself and counted slowly to ten in mind. Then he stood up too, smiled at the waitress, took his coat and messenger bag and limped out of the door. The sun was shining in his eyes as he took a deep breath of the fresh spring air. He looked around but Hanson was nowhere to be seen.

He got into his car, started the engine and set off back to Quantico, back to work; back home.

* * *

**That's it! Finally over! Canada goes out to all the Canadians because I wanna live there too! haha**

**And now whom I'd like to thank...:):)**

**Thank you everyone who had accompanied me on this journey of writing this story, it meant a lot to me because it was my first (in English...)!**

**First of all thanks to my wonderful beta-reader REIDFANATIC.**

**Then to everyone who took the effort to review, it was fantastic to read all the positive feedback:) Special thanks to the-vampire-act who had reviewed every single chapter... you get some serious virtual ovation!!:D (And of course thanks to the ones who will review this epilogue too...:D)**

**Thanks to the ones who didn't review but read it; to the 35 people who had added my story to their favorites; to the 3 people who had honored me with their trust by adding me to their favorite authors; and to those who had put this story/me on their story/author alert list!**

**Thank you again everyone, it was really a pleasure to write to you... and if you think you can escape me so easily, I can tell you that I have a new story on mind... hell I've even started writing it... so stay tuned if you wanna read more!**

**Hugs,**

**FFV  
**


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